The Darkness of the Day
by Manhttngal43
Summary: Rory grows up in Luke's apartment, and then Jess moves in, turning things around. Just read it! r/j
1. Prologue

Prologue

* * *

She was sitting in the passenger seat, flipping through the tracks on the CD that her mom was playing.

"Wait, go back!" her mom said as she skipped a track. Rory pressed the back button and listened.

"Seriously?"

"Uh, Ye-ah!" Lorelai insisted. Rory looked at her in disbelief.

"This is probably the worst song on the whole CD."

"Which is why it's the most fun to listen to, cause we can make fun of it."

"Blasphemer." Rory muttered.

"Why thank you," Lorelai bowed her head in acknowledgement. Rory laughed. "Ugh has that dude ever played a guitar before?"

"They probably just keep him on the band to attract the ladies," Rory offered.

"Yeah well, they're repulsing everyone else."

And then, it all happened so fast. A drunk driver ran a red, creating a flash and a bang that can be compared to the Big Bang in the way that it changed the course of the world. Rory saw the glare of the headlights blaring in her face, heard her mother yell out her name, and then all was lost in a confusion of loud noises, flashing lights, and then utter darkness.

* * *

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

_Stupid alarm,_ Rory thought. _I__ thought I set it to go off with music. That was the whole point of getting a clock radio._ She then became aware of a throbbing pain somewhere above her left eye. She also felt something on her arm, something heavy. She opened her eyes slowly, as the throbbing pain grew worse. She had watched enough stupid medical movies with her mom to recognize that she was in a hospital bed. She glanced down at her right arm to notice it was in a heavy white cast. There were flowers and balloons in one corner, brightening up the ugly green hospital shades. And then she saw Luke. He was dozing in a chair next to all the flowers, a teddy bear wearing a "Get Well" shirt dangling from his hand.

She reached with her good hand to her head and felt a mess of bandages. Even her good hand bore the unmistakable mark of bad scratches. She sat up with a jolt as the memory of everything that had happened rushed back. She felt the tug of the oxygen tube being strained, and the consistent beeping of her heart monitor fell out of pattern for a moment. In his light sleep Luke heard her shift and opened his eyes grogilly. When he saw she was awake however, all trace of sleepiness left his eyes.

"Rory!" he said, standing up. "How are you feeling?"

She only looked back confused. Luke shifted uncomfortably.

"Um, Rory," he cleared his throat. "Do you remember what happened?"

She nodded slowly, reliving the flashes of light and the screaming silence.

"Where's my mom?" she managed to choke out. From the look on his face, she knew this was the exact question he wanted to avoid. Automatically her mind jumped to the worst.

"No, she's not-" Luke stopped her when he saw where she was going.

"No, she's not," he reassured her. "But she's not doing so great kid." Rory nodded.

"How bad?"

Luke took a deap breath.

"She's in a coma."

"A coma," Rory repeated numbly. "That's not so good is it?"

"It's too early to tell," Luke said hopefully.

"Yeah," Rory echoed, "it might be ok." She closed her eyes and rested her head back on the pillow. Luke watched her doze peacefully. He hated himself for lying to her. But he couldn't bring himself to break her heart with the truth. But the doctors were 95% sure that Lorelai wasn't waking up.

A week later, Rory had guessed the truth from all the somber faces around her. Her grandparents had been by a lot, but her grandmother could hardly look at her without bursting into tears. Luke stayed by her side every second, leaving for quick five-minute meals in the cafeteria after making her promise him that she would send someone to get him if she needed anything.

"Great news," he told her, after about a week, "Doctor Marcus thinks you'll be ready to go home soon."

Rory tried to be happy, but there was no joy in going home without Lorelai.

"Where will I be going?" she asked. Luke adjusted his baseball cap.

"You're grandparents," he told her. Rory moaned.

"Don't make me go there," she pleaded. He raised his arms hopelessly.

"What can I do?" he said. She didn't seem to hear him, just looked at him with beseeching eyes.

"Let me go with you, I'll do anything. I don't want to go there." She used her final weapon. "My mom wouldn't want me to go there."

Something in Luke's expression changed. His eyes were suddenly brighter.

"Ok," he told her. "Ok." Just then the door to her hospital room opened, and her grandparents trooped in.

"Rory!" they greeted her, dumping yet another porcelain doll on her windowsill. "Doctor Marcus just told us the wonderful news! We have Gertude getting your room ready as we speak. Do you prefer Salmon or Peach?" her grandmother chattered excitedly. "I need to know which linen to order. Oh, this is going to be so exciting, it will be like having a daughter again! Don't worry about a thing dear. I have everything prepared for you at home. I even have an appointment with Mr. Yulugi, our party planner, for your welcome party, and on Tuesday you have an appointment with the dress maker." Richard stepped outside as his cell phone rang. "So Rory," her grandmother went on, unexhausted unlike the patient in the bed. "I also took the liberty of registering you in Chilton. It's a fantastic school, and all the children nearby go there. You'll have so many wonderful friends!" She gestured to the windowsill. "That doll is from the Humfrods. They have a lovely daughter Elise, although her taste in dolls does need some brushing up," she muttered as an afterthought. "That fuchsia is absolutely ghastly."

"Emily?" her grandfather interrupted, poking his head in the door. "It's Mr. Yulugi. He wants to know whether to do light blue or baby blue."

"What?" Emily was incredulous. "I clearly said light blue. What's next, macaroni instead of pasta?" she went out of the room, grabbing the phone out of her husband's hand.

"Luke," Rory whispered meekly. Luke was staring at the door behind which Emily's voice rose, his mouth hanging slightly open. Then he glanced back at Rory, and her panicked eyes. He nodded at her, took a deep breath, and followed his worst fears out the door.

He returned alone ten minutes later. Rory looked at him hopefully.

"You're going to live with me." He told her. A wide smile crossed her face, making him laugh. "I'll hang a sheet up until I can build a wall, and I guess I should order a bed." Rory put her hands out to hug him, and he gently returned her affection. "There is a catch," he added timidly.

"What?" Rory asked darkly.

"You still have to go to Chilton." He quickly added, "But you know, I don't think that's such a bad thing. It's a great school, and maybe it will help you get into Harvard. A better education won't be so bad." He was stopped as Rory smiled.

"It's fine," she whispered, drifting back to sleep. "It's not so bad if I can stay with you."

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Stay tuned for the first chapter... Read and Review!!

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	2. Two Years Later

Rory fastened the button on her Chilton Uniform skirt and pulled her hair into a tight ponytail. She took a last glance in the mirror, smoothed out her shirt, grabbed her bag and headed down the stairs. Luke was flipping eggs in the kitchen area, and Ms. Patty was sitting on one of the stools sipping some coffee.

"Mmmm," she murmered when she saw Rory, "I can never get over how much I love your uniform. It's soo… mmmm," was the only word she could find to work. Rory laughed.  
"Thanks Patty." She turned to Luke. "Bye."

"You have money for the bus?" he asked her.

"Mhmn. Need me to pick anything up on my way home?"

"Yeah, some sugar and blueberries form Dosie's. We're running low and the Blueberry Pancakes are going fast."

"K, see you later." She grabbed her book from the counter and headed out towards the bus station. Luke watched her go. The phone rang. He turned to pick it up.

"Hello?" he listened for a while. "Liz?!... Hold on, slow down." The chatter on the other end only increased frantically. "Jess what? No Liz, I can't. I don't have room! Liz, no. Deal with it." He winced as her voice raised a dissonant pitch. "I wish I could help….no I can't. I told you already, I don't have room for…I'm not turning him away! Liz listen… fine…. No that's not what I-" he glanced at the receiver, which was spitting a dead tone back at him.

"Damn it!"

* * *

Jess Mariano sat on the bus, reading. The lady in back of him was lamenting to her husband about her bratty kids. At least, he thought, smirking, he hoped it was her husband. Of course it was though, nothing interesting really happens in real life, especially in the pie hole of Stars Hollow where he was headed. He wasn't even sure his uncle knew he was coming. His mother had just stuck him on the bus, telling him to go to Luke's; she couldn't deal with him; so what's new? They stopped in Hartford, but he didn't glance up from his book. A movement on his side made him turn. A girl with brown hair and big green eyes had sat next to him, the only available seat left on the bus. She was dressed in a very preppy uniform, tie and all. She pulled out her own book. He would have turned back to his own chapter of misery and not given her another thought, except he noticed one thing. Her book was by the same author.

He turned to her.  
"Dostoevsky?" She looked up, surprised, and then saw his book.

"Yeah you like him too?" she inquired.

"How could you not?" he said passionately.

"I don't know, he's a little hard to get into in the beginning," the girl critiqued. Jess nodded.

"Yeah but once you get into it the whole novel just flies by."

"I guess," she agreed, her green eyes sparkling. He then did something he rarely did, being the kind of kid he was.

"Jess Mariano," he introduced himself. The girl smiled.

"Rory," She said. "Rory Gilmore."

"Nice to meet you, Rory Gilmore," he said. "Where are you headed?"

"Stars Hollow."

"Stars Hollow?" It was beyond him why anyone would live there. "Your family lives there?" She shook her head.

"It's actually just me and my…Dad," she said slowly. "What about you, where do you live?" Jess sat back in his seat and stared out the window.

"Nowhere," he told her.

"Homeless huh?" she chided. He turned back to her teasing face.

"Not homeless," he insisted. "Just the wandering type."

"What, were you raised by Bedouins or something?" He laughed, then turned back to his book, and she to hers.

When they got to Stars Hollow, he waited until she got off the bus and then went out the back door also. He watched her run across the town square to the grocery store. Lugging his bag behind him, he sat down on a bench. He didn't feel like facing hell just yet. Maybe at the end of the chapter…

"Blueberry pancakes?" the very handsome Dean asked as he checked out her purchases.

"Well you know how famous those pancakes are," Rory said, "Luke says soon he's gonna have to put them on the dinner menu too, just so he has enough time to make them for everyone who wants." Dean smiled, his brilliant white teeth dazzling.

"As long he doesn't overwork you. I need you to have time for me."

"You? Always time." She leaned over for a kiss, grabbed her bags, and headed out the door.

"Hey," she greeted Luke as she entered the diner. She disposed of the purchases on the counter.  
"Ahh," he said when he saw them, "you're a lifesaver." Rory smiled.

"Always happy to help."

"Um, listen Rory," he cleared his throat. "I need to talk to you about something."

"Alright, in a minute k?" She hoisted up her book bag. "I'm going to go upstairs to change before I don the apron and bus the tables."

"Good idea," Luke agreed. Rory vanished up the stairs.

Luke looked up at the ringing that indicated the door being opened. He sighed when he saw who it was. Jess stood there, in his black leather jacket and gelled hair, with his army duffel bag dragging behind him. He threw his rag down and went to his nephew.

"Jess," he greeted him.

"Uncle Luke," Jess said civilly. Luka glanced at his bag.

"Is that all your stuff?"

"I travel light," came the reply. Luke rubbed his hands together, slightly at odds of what to do.

"The trip-"

"Was fine." Jess saw his Uncle's discomfort. "Is there somewhere I can dump my stuff?"

"Oh, yeah," Luke said. "Right upstairs." Jess pushed past him.

"Jess," Luke tried to stop him. "Wait!" But he was already gone. "Damn it."

The apartment was comfortable looking, but plain and undecorated. Jess walked around, counter and table, the bed, the chairs. It was small, and he felt stuck. There wasn't much to explore, except for one more door along the wall. Jess thought he heard music coming from it, some sort of rock, but he liked it. He pushed open the door, and just stood there dumbly and stared, trying to process what he saw.

The girl from the bus was standing in the room, and she was changing. When he walked in she was in the middle of pulling off her modest uniform shirt, so that her only protection was a small bra. Her figure was slight and delicate. She straightened up, rummaging in her drawer, and she pulled out a brown shirt. Her brown hair was out of its tight ponytail, and fell down her back in soft waves. He just stood there watching her as she shook it out. Then, holding her shirts, she turned and saw him. She jumped back, clutching the shirt to her small stomach.

"Oh my Gd!" she knocked into the dresser. "What the- Luke!" She stared wildly at him. "What are you doing?" she exclaimed.

Jess blushed and looked down.

"Sorry… I didn't know you were in here. What are you doing here?"

"What am _I_ doing here?" she asked incredulously. "_I_ live here."

"Luke is your-?" at that moment Luke had reached them. He pulled Jess back and slammed the door.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he glared down at his nephew.

"You have a daughter?" Jess asked in disbelief.

"What? O, Rory's not my daughter," he corrected.

"She said she was."

"I did not." Rory came out of her bedroom, now fully clothed. When she saw the way Jess was looking at her she blushed and looked down. "I said you were _like_ my father," she lied. Luke turned red.

"Well um… Rory lives with me… and um Rory, this is my nephew. I wanted to tell you before you found out like this. Jess is going to be staying with us for awhile."

Rory nodded, digesting. She looked around the small apartment.

"Where?" Luke followed the path her eyes had just roamed and lifted his hands helplessly.

"I'm working on it."

"I'm okay on the floor," Jess offered. Luke considered for a minute. He turned to Rory.

"I'm going to run out and see if I can find an air mattress or something." Rory nodded.

"I've got the place covered."

"Thanks." Then turning to the door he said, "I'll be back soon." He left. Rory turned and followed him out the door, grabbing a decorated apron down with her. Jess followed. He watched as she fell into the rhythm of the small town diner, taking orders, greeting all the customers by name.

"Hi Babbette," she greeted a short blonde haired lady.

"Oh hi doll," she replied in her hoarse voice. "I love what's going on with your hair today. I used to go crazy with my hair, back when I was a babe. The boys loved it, if you know what I mean." She spotted Jess watching them from the counter. "Speaking of the devil, who's that hottie, huh? Some prep school hunk?" Jess smiled to himself.

"That's Luke's nephew," she responded in a voice void of emotion. "What will it be today?" she flipped open her pad.

"How bout some of those blueberry pancakes?" Babbette requested.

"We stopped serving those 6 hours ago," Rory apologized.

"Oh come on sweetie. Bend the schedual for ol' Babbette?" she winked. Rory laughed good naturedly.

"One breakfast, coming right up." Jess's eyes followed Rory as she headed into the small kitchen and began preparing the pancake.

"So, why do you live with Luke?" he asked, following her to the stove.

"Well, it was either that or living as a princess with my grandparents in Hartford."

"No parents?"

"No, I have parents," she said, cracking an egg. Jess looked at her confused, but her expression gave nothing away. "Why are you here?" she asked him. "Don't you have parents?"

"My mom shipped me here cause she can't handle me," he told her.

"Should I be scared?" she asked with raised eyebrows. Jess laughed.

"No, I'm not dangerous," he assured her. "Besides, there's nothing I can possibly do in this town. It's suffocating."

"Maybe that's a good thing," Rory mused.

"Or it might just lead to a suicide," Jess mutterd.

"Oh come on," Rory chided, "you haven't even given it a chance. I love it here. All the small town quirks, and everybody's so friendly."

"Don't need to give it a chance. I can just tell that this isn't going to be fun."

"Well how long are you planning on staying anyway?" Rory asked, sliding the steaming pancake onto a plate, and turning to leave the kitchen.

"No clue, but I know it's not going to be a second longer than I have to." He took the plate from her hands and set it in front of Babbette. He turned to her when he got back to the counter. "How about you, mystery girl? How long are you dragging out your stay?"

"I've lived here for two years, and I have no idea when I'm leaving."

"And you're still not going to tell me why?"

"I told you, I had no where else to go."

"Right," Jess said. "Well, we have something in common. We're both stuck here for the foreseeable future."

"As long as you learn how to knock," Rory warned.

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You know the drill... r&R!!!


	3. MotherDaughter

Hey, thanks for all the reviews!! If you want steady updates, keep them coming. This week might be a little slow because I've got midterms but i'll do my best. I'm having fun with this story. K, Hope you like this chapter. Let me know!!

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A week later the three of them had basically fallen into routine and gotten used to each other's presence.

Jess sat at the table upstairs, with a plate of fries, reading a book he had stolen from Rory's room. Rory came home, and threw her backpack into her room. She stole a fry before Jess could stop her. He noticed that she hadn't taken off her coat.

"Going to meet _Dean_?" he said, dragging out the "Dean" in a teasing manner. Rory nodded, swallowing the fry. "Give him and extra smooch for me," he said, turning back to his book.

"I'll be sure to," Rory said, rolling her eyes. "If you bend the spine I'll kill you," she warned referring to the book, as she went out the door.

"Sure," he called after her. He finished the fries and stood up to throw it out. He glanced out the window in time to see Rory running out to meet Dean, who was waiting outsidefor her. They shared a short kiss and then continued walking into the park. Jess tuned back to the table and continued his book. He was at the end, and in fifteen minutes he was done. Jess got up to put in back in Rory's room, and steal another book. Her room was very neat. Her Harvard paraphernalia was pinned up along one wall, her bookshelf and desk line up along another, and her bed was under a window on the third wall. Her dresser stood next to her bed, with her clock radio illuminating light from its numbers. He went straight to the bookshelf. He dumped the book haphazardly on the shelf, knowing Rory would yell at him later for ruining her very meticulous system of organizing her books. He resumed looking for another book.

"Got it!" he pulled one out for a flourish, a book he had been meaning to read for a long time. In his haste he dropped it on to the floor. He bent down to pick it up, and he eye caught something. Stuck in the space between the last shelf and the floor, was an album. Jess found this curious, since all of Rory's other albums were on the third shelf, neatly arranged by year. Either it had fallen without Rory's notice, or she had put it there. The possibility of it being the second case aroused Jess's interest. He reached under and pulled it out. It was a simple album, with a navy binding. In a pink paint pen Rory had inscribed on the front, "MOM" in fancy script. Now Jess was really curious. Rory had steadily avoided any questions about her past since that first day. He sat on the floor and cracked it open.

On the first page was a picture of Rory as a baby. Jess smiled down at it. She was wearing a short blue dress that made her eyes pop out. She was in the arms of a girl who couldn't have been more than a teenager herself. She had long brown hair down her back, and blue eyes that matched with Rory's. There was something in the way she smiled that reminded him of Rory, and also in the way she stood. The next picture was of the same woman, except this time she was laughing as Rory jumped on top of her.

All the other pictures were of Rory and the same woman, who Jess assumed could only be her mother. She looked very young and full of life, doing something crazy in every picture. He smiled at a picture of Rory as a toddler, holdeing a mop and wearing a bucket one her head, her mom standing beside her in a maid's uniform. He turned the pages as Rory grew older and older, and finally came to the last picture. Rory looked about thirteen, which was confirmed by a cone shaped birthday hat with the number "13" on it. She was smiling a wide sparkiling grin, her arms thrown around her mother, who was wearing a matching hat. In the background Jess saw all the weirdoes from the town. There was Mrs. Patty and Kirk, Mr. Dosey looking stern, Gypsie, and all the others, all donning the same hats; even Luke stood stoically to the side. Jess had never seen Rory looking so happy, all though truth be told, he had only known her for a week. Still, the happiness in that picture was more than he thought her capable of.

"What are you doing?" a small voice said from behind him. Jess jumped around and saw Rory standing in the doorway.

"Stealing a book," Jess answered, trying to match Rory up with the happy girl in the picture. "I thought you went out."

"Yeah well, I forgot something. And that's not a book." Rory strode over to where he was and grabbed the photo album out of his hands. When she saw which album it was, all humor left her face, which turned to ashen stone. "Get out,"" she said quietly, but firmly.

"What happened to her?" Jess questioned boldly.

"Please just leave," Rory repeated her request, sitting down on her bed. Jess, sensing the delicacy of the subject, didn't question her further, and left the room, closing the door behind him.

"What happened to Rory's mother?" Jess asked Luke later, when they were cleaning up after closing the diner. Rory had gone to sleep early, claiming she had a headache.

"That's for Rory to tell you," Luke answered. "Why do you asked?"

"Found some pictures," Jess told him, wiping the tables down with a rag. When he looked up, Luke was standing over him, his expression serious. "What?"

"You were going through her stuff?"

"What? No! I just… I just found it okay?" Luke took a hold of his shoulder and looked him square in the eye.

"You stay out of her stuff, you got that? Leave Rory alone," he demanded. Jess stepped back, his hands held up in mock surrender.

"Alright, Alright. Cool down." He finished cleaning and went upstairs, where his book awaited him.

The next day at breakfast Rory was subdued, picking at her pancakes.

"You alright?" Jess asked, playing the part of submissive.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she insisted, but she wouldn't meet his eyes.

"Liar," he said. She glared at him. "Alright, alright!" he said, backing off. Luke rolled his eyes.

"I've gotta get to school," she mumbled, grabbing her bag. Rory turned to Luke. "I'm gonna be home late today," she said. Jess didn't miss the meaningful look she gave him.

"Yeah sure," he nodded.

"Where you gonna be?" Jess asked her curiously. She glared at him again.

"Visiting," was all she said.

"Visiting who?" he pressed.

"No one Sherlock," she shot, aggravated. Jess threw up in hands in mock surrender.

"Excuse a guy for being curious!" he protested. Like gave him a look. Jess laughed. Luke turned back to Rory.

"Have a good day," he told her. He turned to Jess. "You, get ready for school."

"So much love," Jess sighed.

"Hello Rory," the white uniformed nurse greeted her.

"Hi Anna. How have you been?" Anna the nurse looked at her sympathetically.

"I've been fine dear," she answered gently. "How about you?"

"I've been good," Rory said.

Anna smiled. "That's good dear." Rory smiled back and continued on her way past the nurses' station. She went all the way to the end of the hall and made a right, and the found her way to the second door on the left. She took a deep breath before entering.

"Hi mom," she said, sitting next to the lifeless figure. "It's Rory. It's been a couple of weeks since I came, and I miss you. Things at school have been the usual. Paris has added a few more things to the long list of reasons why she hates me, including that I sit in front of her in English and my hairclip gives her a headache. Dean's really good. I know you would love him; he's so good to me. I know he really wishes he could meet you." Rory smiled to herself, and continued. "Luke's nephew moved in. His name is Jess. It's a little crowded with three people in the apartment, so I think Luke might go look for a bigger place. Especially Since Jess takes up a lot of room because he just sits upstairs all reading and listening to really loud music. I might be horrible for saying this, but it's kind of funny when him and Luke fight. Babbette told me to tell you hi. Everyone really misses you mom." The smile left Rory's face. "You need to come back to us okay?" she squeezed Lorelei's hand and stood up. "Ok, I'll see you next time mom. Don't party too hard while I'm gone." Rory leaned down and kissed her forehead, smoothing back her hair. "Seriously, someone needs to brush your hair." Rory made her way outside, saying goodbye to Anna as she left.

Jess was sitting on the bench by the bus stop when Rory got off.

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm sorry," Jess said. "I'm also not allowed to sit on park benches?" Rory rolled her eyes, hitching her backpack higher up her shoulders. "Luke kicked me out. Apparently his costumers don't share my feeling about Metallica." He closed the book he was reading and stood up, falling into step with Rory.

"So, are you ever going to tell me where you were?" he asked her once again.

"Probably not," she admitted. Jess nodded in concession.

"So how do you know Luke anyway? I mean, you must have some sort of really good connection with him if you live with him."

"He's a friend of my mom."

"Your mother who you refuse to talk about." Rory nodded."And why is that?"

"Cause I just don't want to talk about it," she said with a note of finality, and even Jess was smart enough not to push it.

He would just have to figure it out for himself.

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K, you know the drill. The review button's right there!


	4. Puzzle Piece

Jess contented himself for the time being with snooping into her room when she wasn't in the apartment and looking for anymore clues to her past. He couldn't explain why he cared so much. _I don't care_, he would tell himself firmly. He didn't allow himself to care about anything. But there was something that drew him. He was more comfortable with calling it _curiosity_. He wanted to know what was causing that tragic air about her, even when she seemed to be happy. He wanted to know why, when Luke didn't think anyone was looking, he would stare at the back of her head with a sad look in his eyes and sigh softly to himself.

It was two weeks until Rory informed Luke that she would be home late again without giving a real explanation. After she left, Jess quickly formed a fleeting plan.

"I'm going to hit the bookstore after school," he told his uncle. Luke nodded.

"When do you think you'll be back?" Jess shrugged.

"You never know what kinda things you'll find in a bookstore," he said. "I don't know, it could be hours." Luke rolled his eyes.

"Just try and be back before I close up. I could use a shift from you."

"Anything for you, Uncle Luke," he said, grabbing his bag and bowing out of the diner.

Jess only went to the first few of his classes, which was actually pretty good considering his attendance record. At lunch, he snuck off the grounds and grabbed the bus to Hartford. He got off the bus right in front of Chilton. He stared up at it in awe. _This_ is where Rory went to school everyday? Wow. He could not imagine her sitting among all the other snobs that probably went to a school like this. It just didn't fit Rory's image. It was yet another piece of the mysterious puzzle that Rory was to him. He looked at his watch and figured he had a couple of hours to kill, so he wandered off, wondering whether he could find a bookstore around here.

The bookstore idea turned out to be a complete bust. There was not one decent bookstore in this prim and proper town. All the shelves where either filled with classics like Dickens, or books that changed your brain to mush as you were reading them, like the A-list. He was about to give up when he noticed a small room off to the side tht he hadn't seen before. A smile crossed his face as he entered. _ So this is where they keep the good stuff._ He started sifting through the hidden books.

"Good afternoon Mrs. Gilmore." Jess froze in the process of flipping throught the pages of an old French novel. Could it possibly be Rory's mother up front? He crept forward so he could see into the front room.

"Hello Jane," a fancy lady with dyed red hair was speaking to the woman who ran the bookstore. It definitely did not match the face that jess had seen in the pictures.

"How can I help you Emily?" jane asked her. Emily Gilmore surveyed the bookstore.

"Well, I'm looking for something for my granddaughter. She's quiet the sophisticated reader."

"How is Rory?" Jane asked.

"Splendid," Emily said, relishing the opportunity to brag. "Did you know she's top of her class at Chilton?"

"'I'm not surprised, she always seemed like a bright girl. Is she still living in Stars Hollow?"  
Emily nodded.

"Yes. I admit, I was very unhappy with the arrangement and I agreed to it on a trial only basis, but she seems very happy there, I suppose she likes being closer to her home. Now," Emily said, looking around, "what book do you sugggest." Jess chose that moment to come out of the room.

"Try this one," he said, handing it to Emily on his way out of the bookstore.

"What?" Emily said, turning to the badly dressed boy, but he was gone

Jess arrived back in front of Chilton just as the school was being let out. Jess shrunk out of sight as the students piled out. He caught sight of Rory, her brown hair pulled back into its typical pony.

"See ya Mary!," a tall boy with blond hair yelled toward her. Rory rolled her eyes. Instead of heading towards the bus that would take her home, she headed down the block and around the corner. Jess followed her discreetly. She headed a few more blocks down and stopped in front of a hospital. Jess followed her into the hospital, ducking behind a gurney when she turned around at one point. He tailed her form a distance as she navigated her way around. She definitely knew where she was going, and some of the nurses were greeting her by name. finally he turned w=one corner to discover that she had disappeared. He slly peeked into each room and found her about three doors in. He watched silently from the doorway as she approached an immobile figure in the bed. The face was obscured slightly by the machines, but if Jess had to make a guess based on what he could see, he would say that this was the woman from Rory's album. Sure enough Rory bent down to give her a soft kiss.

"Hey Mom," she said. "I missed you. There's not much new that's going on right now. Dean and I have almost been going out for two months. I wish you could meet him. Luke likes him, although sometimes he gets a little too protective when he's around. It's funny , and I know he only does it because he cares, but Dean gets so frustrated with him sometimes. Jess keeps going through my stuff, because he thinks I don't notice. I've just figure out better places to hide my things. The whole living situation is working out pretty well. It's kind of like having a brother. He steals my books and my c-ds, which I guess indicates that he has good taste." Rory lapsed into silence, absentmindedly stroking her mothers hand. Jess stood transfixed in the doorway. "I miss you Mom," she whispered. "I never give up hope, I know you wouldn't want me to, but everyday that you don't wake up, it becomes harder and harder. I know that everyone who knows you misses you, even Grandma and Grandpa. And there are so many new people in my life that I want you to meet, who I know would love you. Come back," she pleaded. She brushed some hair out of her mother's eyes. Jess watched, mesmerized, his mind racing as he put all the pieces together.

"Excuse me, can I help you?"

Jess nearly jumped out of his skin when the nurse tapped him on the shouder.

"Um, no," he said, flustered, "I'm just, um, waiting for Rory."

The nurse stared him down with her eyebrows raised.

"Thanks, though," he added, turning back towards the door.

Rory was standing there, the scariest he had ever seen on her face.

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	5. Kiss and Makeup

Alright, it's starting to get intense... tell me what you think!

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The fury on Rory's face mingled with hurt confusion.

"What are you doing her?" she practically yelled at him.

"I…I…" Jess stuttered, desperately trying to figure out how to calm the situation down.

"Did you follow me here?" Rory demanded.

"Well, It depends what you define as following?

"You, spying on me, and then following me to this hospital!"

"Ok, fine, I followed you," Jess confessed. "You would've made it easier on both of us if you had just told me about this," he added. Rory looked incredulous.

"Are you serious? This is my life, Jess!" she yelled at him. "You don't earn the right to know everything about me just because we live in the same apartment! If I don't want to give you my life story, then you just have to deal with it!" She turned and ran down the hallway, all the way out of the hospital.

"Rory, wait!"

She ran down the block and around the corner. She didn't stop running until she reached the bus stop, where the bus was just pulling up. Jess, out of breath, got on the bus after her and followed her to her seat. She turned her face towards the window as he took the seat next to her.

"Rory, I'm sorry." She refused to look at him. "Don't do that," he pleaded. "You can't stay mad at me forever. That would make living together pretty complicated." This too, received no response. Jess lapsed into silence for a few minutes.

"I'm really sorry, Rory," Jess tried again. "You're right. It's your life and I have no business butting in where you don't want me to." Rory turned her head slowly, wiping her eyes with the sleeve of her coat.

"Well, now you know," she said simply, betraying no emotion.

"Yeah I guess I do," Jess conceded. "Why wouldn't you tell me? It's not like it's something to be ashamed of… unless it's your fault she's in there."

"No! No, it's not my fault. It was a drunk driver," she told him. "I just don't like people feeling sorry for me," she confessed. Jess raised his eyebrows.

"Rory, come on. My mother begged Luke to take me, because she didn't want me around anymore. I'm too busy feeling sorry for myself to feel sorry for you," he told her, provoking a small smile. The atmosphere relaxed, and they rode the rest of the way in a solemn silence.

After they had dinner that night, and Rory had disappeared somewhere with Dean, Jess approached Luke.

"So, I know about Rory," he admitted. "About her mom and everything." Luke turned to him, clenching his jaw.

"Dammit Jess I told you to leave her alone." Jess ignored this.

"Where's her dad?

"All over the place," Luke said, cleaning the table with a rag. "He and Lorelai-that's Rory's mom- were never married. She got pregnant when she was sixteen. He shows up every six months or so and calls every now and then, but she wouldn't have been able to live with him, he's still trying to find some stability."

"You don't like him very much," Jess observed.

"I just don't like seeing Rory disappointed," Luke allowed, throwing the rag over his shoulder. "Half the time he doesn't show up when he says he will, or shows up for a day before being whisked away to who knows where, and every time she pretends that she's not hurt, but she's terrible at covering those things up."

"So how'd she end up in a prissy school like Chilton?" Jess asked, leaning his arms against the table.

"That was her Grandparent's doing. Frankly, I think it was a good idea, which is about the only thing I have ever agreed on where they're concerned. Rory is very smart, and a school like this one will help her get into a great university."

"Cool," was all Jess responded he turned to go back to his mattress and music.

"Jess," Luke asked.

"Yeah?" Jess responded.

"Don't press her or anything ok? Her and her mom, they were really close. It's harder for her to cope with all this then she lets on."

"Whatever you say, Uncle Luke," Jess said, remembering the monologue he had heard back in the hospital room.

Jess did back off. Now that he knew the whole story, it didn't irk him so much that there were pieces missing. Dean still annoyed him like crazy, but he knew he had to live with it.

He was surprised when Rory came down one Sunday and asked him for a ride.

"Where to?" Jess asked, pulling a skull-and-bone shirt over his head.

"The hospital." Jess, who was reaching for his comb, stopped and turned to look at her.

"The hospital?" Rory nodded. "Where's Dean?"

"He has to work."

" I don't know Rory…"

"Come on! Please?"

"Alright, you want to go now?" Another nod. Jess grabbed his keys. "Let's go."

Soon they were on their way, jess leaning back, one hand on the steering wheel. Jess turned his head to Rory.

"So what, do have some sort of schedule? Or do u just pick up and go whenever you feel the urge?"

"I go when I miss her," Rory answered. "I mean, I miss her all the time, but I go when it gets bad.

"Like now?"

"Yeah." Rory stared out the window. "Something about this weather maybe," she speculated. "She loved the snow. When I was seven, there was this huge snowstorm, like three feet of snow. And she bundled me up, and we went outside and made our own winter playground. We built a snow fort, and a snow clown, and even a big hill that we could sled down. We stayed outside until we couldn't feel our fingers and toes anymore. And then we went inside and had hot chocolate with marshmallows and ice cream and whipped cream, and we watched Barbra Streisshand movies for the rest of the night." Rory was smiling at the memory, and Jess couldn't help smiling himself.

"She sounds like a cool mom," he said.

"She is," Rory said. "We're best friends."

When they arrived at the hospital, Rory fell into a pensive silence. They traveled once again through white corridors, the florescent lights beaming down on them. When they got to Lorelai's room, Jess stopped by the doorway to let Rory go in by herself. Roy paused as she passed him.

"You want to come?" Jess did a double take.

"What?"

"Come." Rory grabbed his hand and led him into the room. They neared the bed, Rory sat on the edge of it; Jess remained standing. Rory's mom lay still on the bed, her brown waves framing her face. The heart moniter beeped steadily in the background

"Hi mom," Rory began. "This is Jess, you know, Luke's nephew that I was telling you about." She looked up at Jess expectantly.

"Um, hi," Jess said uncertainly, but this seemed to satisfy Rory.

"I think you would like Jess if you got to know him," she continued. "He's got good taste in music, and food too. And he's really nice to me," Rory smiled at Jess. "He even drove me all the way here even though it's the middle of a Sunday. And he knows how important you are to me, and he respects that. And I know you might not have liked how sometimes he has an attitude about some things, and how he sometimes tries to block himself in and won't open up to anyone, but he's opened up to me, and he's let me see that he's really a good person."

Jess broke away from Rory's gaze, his cheeks blazing red.

"I think I need some air," he said. "Meet you by the car."

Rory went on talking for a couple of more minutes, and then came out to meet Jess. As soon s she saw him she could tell that he had been crying.

"Jess, what happened?" He looked down, ashamed that he had been caught in a moment of weakness.

"Did you mean those things that you said?"

"To my mom? Of course I meant them. Jess what's going on?"

Jess moved closer to her.

"You see… right through me," he said, his dark eyes bearing down into hers.

"I…" Rory struggled to say something. Jess leaned forward, and softly kissed her, as kiss that soon turned passionate.

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Review! Even criticism is appreciated for constructive purposes...

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	6. Endings Lead to Beginnings

As soon as they pulled away, the moment was over.

"Oh my god!' Rory exclaimed.

"Rory…" Jess tried to calm her down.

" Don't touch me," she warned, stepping backwards. "Oh my god!"

"Rory, would you just-"

"I think we should go home. Now."

They drove home in silence. When they reached Stars Hollow Jess turned to Rory.

So what happens now?"

"I don't know," Rory answered, staring out the window.

"What are you going to tell Dean?"

'I don't know," Rory repeated.

"Are you even going to tell him anything?"

"I don't know!" Rory answered for the third time.

"Well," Jess sighed, pulling up in front of the diner, "looks like you have a couple of things to figure out." Rory nodded, her chin quivering. Jess cringed, knowing what would come next. Sure enough, the tear began flowing. Jess looked around awkwardly. He wasn't very good with the whole crying thing. "Come on Rory, don't cry," he tried. Surprisingly, this didn't work.

"What have I done?" she gasped. "I have a _boyfriend_. Oh my god, I'm such a terrible person!" she sobbed. "What would my mom say?" Jess tried again.

"Rory, I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I kissed you, and that it's putting you through so much confusion. But you're not a terrible person! A terrible person wouldn't be sobbing with regret."

"A good person wouldn't have cheated on her boyfriend!" Rory retorted.

"A good person would realize that they're only human, and sometimes they give into their emotions. Now, will you stop crying before Luke sees and kills me?" Rory nodded, wiping her eyes on the sleeve of her coat. Jess helped her out of the car. The second they got upstairs she barricaded herself in her room. Jess was no mind reader, but something told him that his feelings for Rory would be put on hold for a while. There was no point in denying that he even _had_ feelings for her, no point in lying to himself. He cared about her, unlike the way he had cared for anybody else in the world.

Rory sat on the floor in her room, her back pressed against the base of her bed. Her knees were drawn up to her stomach. In her hands she gripped the album of her mother.

"Mom," she cried, "I need you! I'm so confused, and I need your help. Come back." Her body racked with sobs. "Please… I'm so… alone," was the last thing she said before her emotions completely took over.

Jess and Rory made a point not to mention the kiss over the next week. Jess heard the first hint of it the next week when Rory came up to the apartment, looking like she had seen a ghost.

"What's the matter?" he said, turning the page in the novel he was reading.

"I told him," she said. When this got no response, she elaborated. "Dean; about the kiss." Jess put down his book.

"You told him?! That was stupid." Rory shot him a look that shut him up.

"He didn't even say anything," she recounted, sitting down next to him. "Just got up and walked away all fast and stiff, you know, the way he walks when he's really angry." Jess nodded.

"Yeah, well Dean's a jerk," he said. Rory turned to him, angry.

"No he's not! Dean's a great guy, and he's so good to me, and I go ahead and treat him like dirt!" She held her head in her hands. "I won't blame him if he never talks to me again."

"Neither will I," Jess agreed. Rory looked at him, hopeless shock in her eyes. "Well, you did cheat on him," he pointed out. Rory took the book from him and smacked him with it. "I'm sorry!" Jess said, holding his hands up in defense. "Look Rory, if Dean never talks to you again, then he's an idiot. He'll come around."

Dean never really got the chance.

He approached Jess the next day in school.

"Why the heck do you think it's okay to go kissing my girlfriend?" he asked, towering over jess. Jess peered up at him, grinning.

"I'm sorry," he faked. "Just thought she should know what it felt like to kiss someone without standing on her tiptoes!" The muscles in Dean's jaw clenched.

"Stay away from her," he warned. Jess cocked his head.

"That'll be kind of difficult, considering we live together."

"I can fix that," Dean said, curling his hands into fist.

"Is that right?" Jess taunted. He poke Dean on the shoulder.

"Don't touch me jerk!" Dean said, pushing him backward. That was when they both lost it.

Twenty minute later, Jess was icing his eye when Luke came to pick him up from the principle's office.

"You've got to stop the fighting Jess," he sighed once they were in the car.

"Whatever you say Uncle Luke," Jess said, leaning his head back against the seat, examining his eye in the mirror.

"You need to apply pressure," Luke instructed him. Jess put the ice back on his eye as Luke cellphone rang.

"Hello?... Yeah, this is her guardian… what? How much time?... Ok… we'll be there as soon as we can…Thanks." Luke hung up the phone, all the color gone form his face.

"What is it?" Jess asked.

"It's Lorelei. She's dying."

Jess had never seen Luke drive faster than right then. He came to a screeching halt in front of Chilton. "Don't move," he instructed Jess, even though Jess had no interest in disappearing. He ran through the large, grand entrance in front of Chilton. It looked so odd to Jess; Luke in his faded green coat, sports cap, and sneakers, against the ancient, snobby building. He fidgeted anxiously waiting for them to come out. After what seemed like a lifetime, Luke reappeared, half-supporting Rory. Jess stared at her. She looked like a ghost. The blood had disappeared from her face, and her eyes were focused on something far away. Jess slid over on the bench and held his hand out as Luke helped her into the passenger side of the truck. Even though she was bundled in her heavy school coat, she was shivering.

"Take her," Luke commanded Jess. Jess slid his arms around her shoulders around her and squeezed. She made no indication that she even knew he was there.

Luke sped down the street to the hospital. They got there, and stumbled out of the car. They moved together towards the imposing building, Jess's arm still around Rory, supporting her.

Anna the nurse met them as they were coming throught the hospital entrance. She gave Rory a hug as soon as she saw her. Luke turned to her. "How is she?" Nurse Anna put on a mournful face.

"Not so good. Her heartbeat is way down, and her brain activity is irregular."  
"How much time?" This question came from Rory, the first thing she had said since she ahd gotten into the car.

"It's hard to say," Anna answered gently.

Rory nodded, and continued down the hall into her mother's room, Jess and Luke following after her. As soon as they entered the room Jess could tell that something was different. The heart rate monitor was beeping at a slow, erratic pace. Lorelei's breathing was slow and shallow. Rory stood by the side if the bed and squeezed her hand. She tenderly stroked her hair.

"How am I supposed to say goodbye?" she whispered. Tears started to make their way down her cheeks, curving crooked paths to her chin. She bent down and kissed her mother. "I love you," she said. She pulled up a chair next to the bed and sat there, still holding her mother's hand, occasionally stroking her hair or face. Slowly and steadily, Lorelei's heart rate began to drop. Her breaths became farther apart and more shallow. And then, she took one last rattling breath, and her heart rate flat lined.

"Mom!" Rory now gripped her fragile hand in both of hers. Luke was at Rory's side; he took her by shoulders and hugged her. Jess stood back, in his place against the wall. Rory sobbed into Luke's shoulder. The sounds grated against Jess's ears. He didn't want ot be hearing this, to be witnessing this at all. He turned in an effort to sneak out quietly, buthe was stopped by a small beep. He froze in his track, but the beep continued.

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

The hear monitor was beeping steadily. Rory stopped crying and looked up.

"Mom?"

Lorelei, still imobile, suddenly let out a small cough. She shifted slightly, and then, before their very eyes, her eyes slowly fluttered open.

"Oh my god," Jess said softly to himself.

"Oh my god," Luke breathed.

"Oh my god!" Rory looked like she was afraid to move, as if this was a dream and the slightest motion would send it spiraling in the wrong direction. "Mom?"

Lorelei blinked and stared at them, looking lost.

"Mom, it's me. It's Rory! Do you know where you are?" Lorelei stared blankly back at Rory.

"What's going on? Where're my parents? Where's Christopher?" she demanded.

Rory was the one who looked confused now.

"You want Dad? It's okay Mom. Everything's going to be okay." Rory moved towards her, but Lorelei held her arm out in front of her and shrank back.

"Who are you?" she asked.

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	7. Reuniting

"Amnesia," the doctor proclaimed. "She can't remember anything past when she was sixteen."

Rory bit her lip and buried her head into Jess's coat.

"She's very confused right now," the Dr. Fash went on. "She doesn't know where she is, and keeps asking for Christopher."

"That's my dad," Rory explained. Dr. Fash nodded, glancing at his charts.

"I think our best coarse of action is to bring in Christopher, see if she'll let him talk to her, explain what's going on." Rory shifted uncomfortably.

"Is there anything else we can do?" she implored.

"We can put her in rehab for a while and see how much good that does, but this is probably your best shot at getting through to her."

Rory sighed.

"I'll see what I can do," she pledged. "But it looks like she'll be going into rehab."

Rory fell asleep on Jess's shoulder on the way back home. Jess carried her out of the car when they got back to the diner. He heard someone behind him, and turned around. There, looking furious was Dean.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he demanded. Jess rolled his eyes.

"She fell asleep. What do you want me to do, let her freeze in the car?"

"No," Dean answered.

"Okay then," Jess said, proceeding into the diner, leaving Dean, not feeling any better, out in the cold.

After both Rory and Jess were sleeping, Luke picked up the phone, flipping through his phone book, he found the number he was looking for. He took a deep breath and placed the call.

"Hello? Hi this is Luke Danes…"

Christopher Hayden walked through the security barrier in the Tweed New Haven Regional Airport. He sighed as he surveyed the small airport. It was last night that he had received the call. He had been shocked to find out that Lorelei had woken up. He had never imagined it could be possible. After a few minutes though, he had regained his composure enough to listen to what the diner owner was asking of him.

"It's not for me," he had said. "It's for Rory, and for Lorelei. The doctor thinks this is her best shot for getting better. And no offense, you're not so great at being there for Rory, so do this one thing to give her her mother back, and then you won't have to worry about all your responsibility as a father, because she'll have a mother."

Christopher had considered for a moment.

"I'll do it," he had declared.

"What?" Luke the diner man had been surprised that he had agreed so early.

"I'll be there as soon as I can," he promised before hanging up. He had gone online and bought a ticket for the next afternoon. He had made arrangements at work, and he would be managing things from his laptop for the next couple of weeks.

Now, he hailed a cab and headed down to Stars Hollow. When he got there, he tipped the cab driver, took his suitcase, and smoothed his sweater. He walked into the diner.

"Take a seat wherever you want," a grungy looking boy holding an order pad told him.

"Who are you?" Chris asked him. The boy looked taken aback.

"Excuse me?" Chris moved on to the next question.

"Where's Rory?" Jess raised his eyebrows at the man.

"Why, are you some sort of rapist or something?" This boy was seriously starting to irk Christopher. Just then Luke came out of the kitchen, and he saw Chris.

"Christopher!" Wiping his hands on his apron, he came over and shook his hand. "Jess, this is Rory's father. Chris, this is my nephew." The boy's eyes widened when he heard the man's relation to Rory. "Rory left to the hospital a couple of minutes ago," Luke told Christopher.

"I guess I'll head over there then. Did you tell her I was coming?" he asked. Luke hesitated.

"No," he admitted.

"You didn't think I would show up," Chris guessed accurately. He nodded. That was fair. Chris let himself out of the diner and into another taxi, this one to take him to the hospital.

He got there, and a nurse directed him where to go. He found Rory talking to the doctor outside of Lorelei's room. He waited until the doctor had left before he made his presence known.

"Dad!" Rory ran and hugged him. "You came!" Her smile took up her whole face. Chris had a feeling she hadn't smiled for a while.

"Of course I came kiddo," he said, holding her at arms length. "Is she awake?" Rory's smile faded.

"Yes," she answered. "But she doesn't recognize me. She won't let me talk to her." Christopher pulled her close and hugged her again.

"Why don't you go get some coffee," he asked her, "and I'll see what I can accomplish." Rory nodded. She squeezed her dad one more time.

"I'm glad you came," she said, before disappearing around the corner.

Christopher smoothed out his hair, and checked his reflection in the window. He took a deep breath, and proceeded into the hospital room. Lorelei was sitting up in her bed, staring at the television screen. When she heard Christopher come in, she turned to him, but there was no recognition in her eyes.

"Are you a doctor?" she asked wearily.

"Come one Lor," he said, "Don't you recognize your old friend Christopher?" Lorelei narrowed her eyes.

"You're not Chris," she accused. "What kind of trick is this?" she looked around the room nervously, as if looking for something to use as a weapon, or a way to escape.

Chris slowed down, approached her gently.

"It is me, Lor," he coaxed her. "Come on," he cajoled, sitting on the end of her bed, "look at me." She lifted her head and met his eyes. As she studied him, Chris could almost see a small flicker register in her eyes.

"It is you, isn't it?" Chris smiled. "Wow, you're old." They both laughed. Then Lorelei's face turned serious. "Chris, what's going on? You're the first person that I've recognized. Why are they keeping me here?"

Chris took a deep breath and, holding Lorelei's hand, began to tell her everything.

"There was an accident two and a half years ago," he began softly. "You were hurt pretty badly, and barely survived, but you've been in a coma ever since." Lorelei's eyes widened. She gripped Christopher's hand in a panic.

"I was pregnant! Chris, did the accident hurt the baby?" her eyes were wide with fear.

"That's not all," he continued, calming her down. "You've suffered amnesia. Things are a lot different then you think. You can't remember anything since you were sixteen."

"How old am I now?" she asked, afraid to hear the answer.

"32," Chris told her gently. Lorelei let out a cry.

"Oh my god," she choked. "I can't remember half my life!" Chris stroked her arm.

"It's ok," he soothed. "That's what I'm here for. I'm going to help you remember," promised Chris. Lorelei nodded, trying to take hold of her emotions.

"So, how is my life?" she asked. "Am I happy?"

"Very," Chris assured her. "You have so many friends and people that love you. You manage an inn, and you have a house that you love. And you have a daughter," he added.

"A rebellious teenager?" Lorelei guessed. Chris shook his head.

"A smart, innocent teenager who you love very much. I've never seen a mother-daughter-bond quiet like yours."

"It's that girl isn't it?" she guessed. "She tried to come and talk to me, but I wouldn't let her. Is she our daughter?" Chris nodded. "She's pretty," Lorelei observed. "At least she got her looks from me." Chris laughed.

"There you go with that humor of yours," he said. He paused. "I missed you Lor." Just then there was a small knock on the door. A girl timidly stuck her head through the door.

"Dad?"

"Come on in, kiddo,' he said. Slowly the girl made her way towards the bed. Lorelei sat up, drinking in the appearance of her daughter. "Lorelei," Chris introduced, "this is our daughter, Rory."

Rory smiled shyly. "Hi mom," she said. There was something elusively familiar about her voice to Lorelei.  
"Rory," she repeated. The girl nodded.

"Yeah, you named me after yourself," she told her. Lorelei smiled.

"That sounds like something I would do." Rory smiled, nodding.

"How are you feeling?" she asked her, looking for something to start a conversation.

"Damn good," Lorelei declared. "I've just slept for the past two years!" Rory laughed. "I'm frustrated," she admitted. "I would give anything just to remember." Rory nodded sympathetically.

"Well, me and Dad are here to help you," she assured her.

"So when do I get out of this dump?" Lorelei beseeched.

"Should be about a week," came the answer. "The doctors just want to make sure everything is stable."

Lorelei settled herself back in her bed. With a glance at her father, Rory said, "I should get back now. I've got school tomorrow, and I should finish up my work." She hugged her dad. "Promise to come by the diner later?" Chris nodded. "Bye Mom," she said, turning to the frail figure in the bed. Lorelei watched her leave.

"I must have done something right," she observed to Chris. Chris nodded.

"You were a great mother," he assured her a her.

"So are we… married?" Lorelei ventured. Chris shook his head. "I live in Chicago now actually," he told her.

"Wow, I never pictured you as a big city kind of guy."

"Well, life surprises you sometimes."

"I'll say," Lorelei agreed. "So tell me about my life."

Meanwhile Rory took the bus back to Stars Hollow. When she got off the bus, she saw Dean leaving the market. He saw her, and they both looked down. They hadn't spoken since Rory told him about her kiss with Jess. Dean hesitantly made his way over to her.

"Hey," he said

"Hey" she replied awkwardly. "How are you?" as soon as the words came out she heard how pathetic they sounded.

"Fine," he replied curtly.

"Um, I should get back to Luke's," Rory excused herself.

"Right, back to Jess," Dean mumbled. Rory was already worn out from the days events, and she was not in the mood for this.

"Dean, it's not like that!" she protested.

"Oh yeah, because you guys have been spending an awful lot of time together, and the next thing I know you're kissing him!"

"What do you want me to do about it?" Rory argued, "We live together!"

"Don't remind me!"

"What should I do Dean, move out of Lukes?" Rory argued. " Just tell me where the hell I should go! I don't need this right now Dean! I've got a mother in the hospital who doesn't remember me!" She burst into tears ran back toward Luke's.

"Rory, wait!" Dean called to her retreating back. Rory stopped, and turned around slowly.

"What?" she asked. Dean said nothing, struggling with his thoughts and emotions.

"I'm sorry," he said finally. Rory studied him, her vision blurred by the tears.

"So am I." She turned her back on him and continued to her sanctuary in Luke's.

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Alright, definitely not my best chapter, but I'm trying to keep things moving along. Plus it's a miracle i finished this at all considering the workload that i have!

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	8. The Photo Album

Thanks so far to all my awesome reviewers! You're what motivate me to keep the chapters coming. On the other hand, i know their are a lot of readers who aren't reviewing... hmmmm. All right, on with the story!!!

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The next day, Rory went back to the hospital after school.

"Hi Mom," she said as she entered the room.

"Hi, Rory," her Mom replied. She was sitting up today, her back propped against the pillows.

"How are you feeling?" Rory inquired.

"Much better," Lorelei assured her. "Seeing Chris definitely helped me. It's hard for me to grasp that I have this whole life I don't know about though. If you weren't standing right in front of me, I probably wouldn't believe him. I feel like there are so many memories that I should have of our time together." Rory smiled.

"I brought something that might help," Rory told her. She sat down in the chair next to the bed, putting her school bag on the floor next to her. Out of it she pulled the blue-bound album, full of pictures from the past.

"Maybe this will give you a picture of what our life was like." Lorelei gazed at her with admiration.

"You really are the dream daughter aren't you?" Rory blushed modestly.

"I had a good role model," she supplied

"Me?" Lorelei laughed. "If you had turned out anything like me… well, let's just say you're nothing like me. I got pregnant at sixteen remember?"

"Yeah, and you built yourself a whole life without your parents help."

"Speaking of Richard and Emily," Lorelei send, sinking back into her rebellious habit of calling them by their first name, "where have they been?"

"Paris," Rory said. "Grandpa was transferred there. They're trying to get a flight in, but the airports are close because of some sort of approaching snowstorm or something."

"I love snow," Lorelei said. "Anyway, back to the album," Lorelei insisted. "Come closer, so I can see it better," she commanded, patting the bed. Rory shifted herself onto the bed, and cracked open the album.

The sound of Lorelei's heart rate accelerated slightly in anticipation of what she was seeing. The first picture showed Lorelei, tired and weak, but her face glowing as she cradled her newborn baby daughter. The next picture was of her giving Rory a bath. The sleeves of a maid uniform were rolled up, and the baby sat in a small circular tub, the small amount of hair she had wet with shampoo.

"Why am I wearing a maid's uniform?" Lorelei questioned. Rory began to explain to her how she had run away, arrived at the Independence Inn, and demanded a job.  
"We lived in a small house in the back," Rory told her. "We didn't move to Stars Hollow until I was nine." It when on like that for hours, each question bringing about an overflow of questions. With every page turned, Lorelei began to get a clearer picture of her life. Rory painted for her a happy life, with colorful, comical characters. When she turned the last page, they were both laughing happily. Rory glanced at her watch.

"I better get going," she said remorsefully. "I don't want Luke to be worried."

"Luke?" Lorelei questioned, puzzled. "The diner guy?"

"Yeah," Rory answered nonchalantly. "That's where I live."

"You don't live with your father?" Lorelei asked, befuddled. Rory raised her eyebrows.

"In Chicago? No way."

"Oh," Lorelei nodded, digesting this news. "I guess I just assumed…" Rory smiled.

"Goodnight mom," she said.

"Goodnight Rory."

Twenty minutes later, Chris walked into Lorelei's hospital room.

"Hey Lor," he greeted cheerfully.

"Hi," she responded moodily. Chris hesitated.

"Are you feeling okay?" he inquired.

"Yeah I'm feeling fine, thanks," she said curtly.

"So what's the problem?" he said, sitting on the edge of her bed.

"Rory doesn't live with you," she accused.

"I know," Chris said, confused. "She lives with Luke."

"Why is she living with some guy who owns a diner instead of with her own father?" Lorelei vented angrily.

"Oh," Chris said, clarity dawning upon him. "Listen Lorelei, I'll try to explain it to you, and I don't know if you'll like what you're going to hear, but I'm not too proud of it myself." He took a deep breath and began. "After Rory was born, I never quite got it together. I graduated from college and everything, but after that… well, you know me. I drifted from one job to the next, never staying in one place to long. I never had enough money; I moved to a new state every couple of months. I was a big letdown. I couldn't have taken care of Rory. I knew she would be much happier staying in Stars Hollow with Luke. You love Luke," Chris assured her when he saw the look on her face. "He has the coffee," he chided. "And she has been so happy there, Lorelei. If I thought she was discontented in anyway I would have pulled her out in a second."

Lorelei just nodded, accepting what he was telling her.

"So what happens now?" she asked

"What do you mean?"

"With you, with me, with Rory. What happens when I get out of the hospital?"

"I'm not sure, Lor. I haven't really talked to Rory about it, so I'm not sure what she wants. But I'm ready to promise you that I am here for you, for whatever you need me for." There were tears glistening in Lorelei's eyes.

"I do need you Chris," she confessed.

"I'm here," he promised, taking her hand.

Luke was wiping down the last table when the bell over the door tinkled. He looked up, and saw Christopher standing there. His shirt was wrinkled, and he looked worn.

"Hey," Luke greeted him.

"Hi," Chris said. They stood there uncomfortably.

"You want some coffee?" Luke offered.

"No thanks," Chris refuted. "Is Rory here?"

"Upstairs," Luke said, "I'll go get her."

"Thanks." Luke turned, and he had one foot on the stair when Chris spoke again. "Thank you," he repeated. "For calling me…" he elaborated. Luke nodded and disappeared up the stairs. Chris took a seat at on of the tables in the small diner.

"Dad!" Rory said, thundering down the stairs.

"Hey kiddo," he greeted, giving her a quick hug. She took a seat across from him.

"You want something to eat?' she offered, "Coffee?"

"I'm good, thanks," he said. "Look I wanted to talk to you about the something," he told her, taking her hand.

"Ok," she said, her wide eyes gazing expectantly at him.

"I want you to realize that I understand you're pretty happy where you are, so anything you choose will be ok, all right?"

"Dad?" Rory narrowed her eyes. "What's this about?"

"Well, you're mother will be out of the hospital soon, and she's going to need a place to go. I've already spoken to the people who have been leasing your house, and the house will be ready for her when she comes back. Now, she's going to need a lot of help when she gets out, so I've already made arrangements with my work, and I'm going to be around for awhile."

"Really?" Rory's face was alight with joy. Chris nodded at his daughter.

"Really."

"I want to move in with you," Rory declared without hesitating.

"Rory, you don't have to do that. I know that you're settled here, and I don't want to ruin that."

"Dad," Rory stopped him. "I have been waiting for this for the past two and a half years." Chris grinned.

"Great," he said. "I could really use your help." Rory got up and hugged her dad for a long time.

"We'll get through this together," she whispered.

When Jess got home, he found Rory's door open. He sauntered in, but stopped short, not understanding what he saw. A duffle bag lay open, and Rory was packing her books into it. Her Harvard board was bare of all its paraphernalia, and the drawers on her dresser were open, and Jess could see that they were empty.

"Going somewhere?" he inquired. Rory turned to him, her eyes sparkling.

"I'm going home," she said.

* * *

to be continued... next chapter will contain more Dean/ Rory/ Jess drama I promise!

See the little green button?... click on it!!


	9. Homecoming

Hey guys, sorry for the long wait! I hope you'll still enjoy it! Just a reminder of whats going on so far: Rory's mom has amnesia form the car accident, and her and her dad are going to live with her at home while she recovers and gets back on her feet. When we left off, Rory was telling Jess that she was going home.

* * *

Jess stood there for a moment, trying to digest what he was being told.

"Home?" he practically choked on the word.

"Yeah," Rory confirmed, throwing her shoes into the suitcase. "My mom's coming home in a few days, so me and my dad are getting the house ready for her."

"Sounds like one big happy family," Jess sais sarcastically.

"It is," Rory agreed, confused about the source of his sarcasm. Jess raised his eyes skeptically.

"Well, good luck with that," he mumbled.

"What's that supposed to mean?' Rory questioned, pausing in her packing and turning to him.

"I don't know," Jess shrugged. "You're just acting like you're going home to this fairy tale ending."

"No I'm not," Rory protested. "You're acting like that," she pointed out.

"Well you're not. Are you really so sure going home is the smartest idea?" Rory couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"Of course it is!" Jess let out a laugh.

"Rory, your mom doesn't remember you!" he reminded her cruelly. "You think if you move back home, get her and your dad together, everything will just be okay?"

"Why would say that?" Rory said, tears forming in her eyes. "Believe me Jess, I know that my life isn't perfect. Don't think even for a second I'm in denial. Do you know how it feels every time my mother looks at me and I know that she doesn't remember me? God Jess, I am trying to do what I can to make life better, instead of lying on my back and saying, screw the world!" she accused. "Don't you dare make fun of me for that!" She turned back to her suitcase. Jess turned and left without a word.

Rory spent her last night at Luke's in silence. Her and Jess still weren't talking. Luke had disappeared downstairs to take inventory. Rory suspected that her leaving was harder on him than he was letting on. He had been like her father for the past two and a half years, and he had been a big part of her life even before the accident.

The next afternoon Rory finished putting all of her things in bags and boxes. She struggled down the stairs and found her father and Luke waiting for her.

"Ready?" her dad asked her.

"Yeah," Rory said. Chris took Rory's bags from her and headed out of the diner to load them into his car. Rory turned Luke.

"Um, good luck Rory," Luke said, scratching his nose. "Even though you won't be living here anymore, you know that you could come to me if you need _anything_."

Rory nodded.

"Yeah, I know." She hesitated. "Luke, I can't possibly say thank you for everything. I-"

Luke nodded

"Yeah, I know," he said. Rory embraced him in a tight hug, and he returned it. Chris came back in. When they had finished their hug, he escorted her outside. Rory got into the car with her father, ready to begin the next chapter of her life.

The next day, a Saturday, Rory started preparing the house for her mothers return on the following day. She dusted her bedroom, freshened her sheets, and just brightened up the abandoned house. Her father helped where he could, but mostly he tried to just stay out of the way. Finally, Chris announced that he was on his way to the hospital to pick Lorelei up. Rory volunteered to pick up Chinese food while he was out. She zipped up her coat, and made her way into the heart of the town. She picked up the Chinese food and was heading back. It was cold outside. Pulling her coat tighter around her, she turned the corner, colliding head first with Jess. They stared at each other for a long moment. Jess was wearing nothing but a sweater to protect him from the bitter cold. He glanced at the bag in Rory's hand.

"Wow, a nice home cooked welcome home meal," he commented sarcastically. Rory glared at him.

"Excuse me," she said, pushing past him. "I have to get back to my fairytale ending!"

"Rory wait!" he pleaded, grabbing her shoulder. She shrugged him off and just kept walking, not looking back.

About twenty minutes after Rory got home, she heard the crunch of tires on gravel. She got up from her position on the couch and opened up the door. Chris was leading Lorelei up the path.

"Welcome home Mom!" Rory said, giving her a hug as she reached her. Lorelei smiled at her forgotten daughter. "Wow," she said, noticing the interior of her home. Rory had decorated the entire front with streamers and balloons, and a big banner proclaiming, "welcome home" hung from the ceiling.

"You did all this?" she asked Rory.

"Dad helped," Rory acknowledged.

"Don't be modest Rory," Chris said. "I only helped by staying out of the way."

"You haven't even seen all of it yet." Rory led them into the kitchen. The sight brought tears to Lorelei's eyes. The entire kitchen was plastered with pictures of the three of them for the past sixteen years. Their was Lorelei and Rory at her kindergarten graduation, all three of them in a park on one of Chris's rare visits. There were pictures spread out and lamented serving as a tablecloth over the set table, the refigerator was hidden behind a collage of pictures, and the cabinets each held a picture on it's door. Lorelei's chair was decorated with pink and purple streamers, and the food lay spread out, steaming on the table.

"Dinner is served," Rory announced, gesturing widely, and Chris pulled out Lorelei's chair for her. Lorelei sat down slowly, trying to take everything in. "Wow," she gushed. "This is just… wow."

"I just wanted you to know how much we missed you," Rory told her.

"You did a good job," she whispered, trying to contain herself. Rory glowed.

"Let's eat," Chris proclaimed.

'Yes, let's," Lorelei agreed. "I've been surviving off of hospital food for the past week. Ugh."

They passed around the food, which was satisfying to all. They spent most of the time talking; Lorelei had a lot of questions. She still could not grasp the idea that she was not sixteen, but double that age, and that she had this entire life she didn't know about. Her daughter seemed to admire her and love her so much, and Lorelei felt guilty that she didn't feel the same attachment due the fact that she couldn't recall her birth.

Finally the plates were licked clean and in the sink. Rory stood up and put on her coat.

"Where are you running off to?" Chris questioned her.

"I'm just going to pick up something for desert."

"Vague," Chris observed. "You need money?" Rory shook her head and headed out the door.

Once outside she took a gulp of the cool air and began walking. She was happy to be out. As happy as she was at the prospect of her mother's recovery, she could not deny the pressure and the weirdness between them. Her mother was acting like her friend, because the only thing she remembers was being sixteen. But as close as their relationship had been, she still needed a mother. Rory got to the dessert store and picked up the cake she had ordered. It was big vanilla cake with white icing. Across it Rory had asked them to write, "Home Sweet Home." The cake decorator had taken the liberty of drawing a small little house and a sun with yellow and blue icing. Rory paid the girl behind the counter and carried the cake outside, beginning her long hourney home. Taylor was overseeing some the 'ceremonious' repainting of the gazebo, and so the entire town square was cut off.

Rory had to walk down some side streets in order to get back on her path home. It was for this reason that she found herself on Deans block. It was as if all the events of the night were teaming up on her, manipulating her to be in a specific place. Of course as she was passing by Dean's house, he was coming out his front door. He stopped short when he saw her. At the very moment, a cat ran out of the bushes, chasing a squirrel. He ran across the grass and onto the sidewalk, right under Rory's feet. To avoid stepping on it, Rory leaned back, twisting her legs together. She tripped and went tumbling down to the floor, the cake flying three feet ahead of her. She heard a sickening _splat_ as it hit the pavement. She crawled over to the cake, and just stared at the mess now lying all over the sidewalk. The "Home Sweet home" was all smeared, and the cake lay in a hundred smushed pieces. She heard Dean run over to her, but all she could do was stare at the cake. As she stared down at the ruined dessert, everything from the past week seemed to build up in the back of her eyes and push their way through.

"Rory, are you alright? " Dean was by her side, holding his hand out to help her up. She did nothing, just remained their, on her hands and knees, and the sobs racked her body. "Rory?" She felt Dean lift her up, felt herself being carried into his house. Her brought her up the stairs and into his rom, where he laid her onto his bed. He disappeared for a few mintues, and then returned with a cool glass of water, which he handed to Rory. Rory stopped her crying long enough to take a sip. The cold water was refreshing. "Rory, what's the matter?" Dean asked,

"Why can't she remember me?" Rory sobbed. "Didn't she love me enough? You should see the way she looks at me, like I'm some really kind stranger!" Her sobbing took over, and she was no longer able to speak. Dean sat speechless, shocked into silence. He attempted what he hoped would be soothing words.

"You know that has nothing to do with it Rory," he assured her. "You mother had no control over which part of her head got hit when she had the accident!"

Rory nodded, clutching one of Dean's pillows to her chest. Deans sat down in his desk chair and rolled over to the bedside.

"Is that all that's bothering you?" Rory wiped her eyes with the back of her sleeve, Dean reached over and handed her a tissue.

"There was also this stupid fight with Jess," she admitted, dabbing at her eyes. "But you don't want to hear about that." Dean's jaws tensed up.

"You're right, I probably don't" he agreed. "But can I make a suggestion?" Rory nodded.

"Maybe, and I can't believe I'm actually defending the guy, but think about it Rory. This whole time, you guys had a whole comraderie going. You both didn't have areal family. You both had mothers that couldn't take care of you, and you both took refuge in Luke's place. All of a sudden, you have a family again, and you go off to you're new life, leaving him behind in the dust. He's probably afraid he's going to become insignificant now that you have your family again."

Rory considered this perspective, and found the strength to sit up.

"I never thought of it like that," she admitted. "And I can't believe you just defended Jess."

"Neither can I," Dean confessed, his eyes wide. "I'd rather not have to do it again, ok?" Rory laughed.

"Ok." She left Dean's house ten minutes later. They had spent of the rest of the time talking, and she found she felt much better as she approached his door. She turned to him as she stepped onto the porch.

"I'm sorry," she said.

"For what?" Dean asked, confused.

"For the whole breakdown episode. I shouldn't have put you through that, not after our fight." Dean stared into her eyes.

"Don't apologize. Even if we fight, that doesn't change the way I feel about you. I still care about you Rory, and I'm always going to be here for you."

She leaned up on her tiptoes, and planted a soft kiss on his lip. He returned the kiss, more passionately, and then their arms were around each other, and she was pressed against his door.

"I have to go," Rory gasped, peeling herself away from him.

"Why?" he whined, grinning.

"Because real life is waiting for me." With one last kiss she made her way to his porch steps. She felt somebody's eyes, other than Deans, on her. She glanced across the street, and her caught in her throat. There, staring right at her, was Jess.

"What took so long?' Chris asked her when she appeared back in the kitchen, carrying a bag full of ice cream.

"You wouldn't believe the line," Rory told him, taking off her coat.

"Really?" her father questioned. "At eight o'clock?" Rory shrugged.

"You know what ice cream does to people," she commented. "I got five different flavors, and toppings." She unloaded all the goodies, and they had a laugh making the most ridiculous Sundays. Once their desserts were finished, Lorelei yawned.

"I'm pretty tired," she told them. "I think I'm going to go to sleep."

"Goodnight Lor," Chris said , flipping through the channels on the TV.

"Goodnight Mom," Rory said, taking a seat next to her father. Lorelei made her way up the stairs, while Rory and Chris stared at the TV. They settled on a show, watching for about five minutes. Then at the same time, they gave each other startled looks and jumped up from the couch. Together they raced up the stairs. Rory knocked hard on Lorelei's door.

"Mom?" she yelled. Lorelei opened the door, wearing her pajama's.

"What is it?" she asked, alarmed by the excited looks on their faces.

"Lor," Chris began slowly, "how did you know this was your room?" Lorelei's expression became baffled as this thought dawned on her for the first time.

"I don't know," she said slowly. "I just came up here…"

Rory and Chris, looked at each other, their hope rekindled. Somewhere, and they weren't sure how deep inside, but somewhere, Lorelei was remembering.

* * *

Review! Your comments and suggestions really have an impact on how ! write the story!


	10. Remeetings

Sunlight broke through the blinds in Rory's room. She rolled over under her soft blanket, but the light persisted, making the inside of her eyelids red. She stretched, sitting up slowly. It took her a few moments to get over the confusion of waking up in her own room. She had been used to waking up in her room in Luke's apartment for so long. She assumed Jess would take over her room now that she was gone. At the thought of Jess the image of him staring across the street at her from last night flashed through her mind. She shrugged off the uneasy feeling and went to her dresser. Looking in the mirror, she brushed through her hair. Then she donned her uniform and went out into the kitchen. Her parents were sitting at the table, sipping coffee.

"Good morning," she said.

"Morning sweetheart," her dad greeted her.

"Morning," her mom said, taking another sip of her coffee.

"So since we have no food in the house," Chris pitched, "why don't we head out to Lukes?" The other too consented to this idea, and so, five minutes later, the bell tinkled as the three of them made their way into Luke's diner.

Rory led Lorelei to the counter, where Luke was pouring coffee.

"Mom, this is Luke," she introduced. Luke wiped his hands on his shirt.

"Hi Lorelai," he said kindly, smiling at the women he used to love. But he couldn't find her behind the confused look in her eyes.

"So you're the man who took care of my daughter for the past two years?" she asked. Luke nodded, adjusting his baseball cap. "We must have been really good friends then," she concluded. Luke nodded, smiling.

"I had the coffee," he told her. "It didn't take much more than that to be your friend." Lorelai laughed. "Well, it's nice to meet you… again." Luke poured her a cup of coffee. Sliding it across the counter at her he told her, "It always has been." The three of them grabbed a table, but before to long Rory had to run to catch her bus. She made her way to the bus stop, the sun shining in her eyes. She heard footsteps behind her. Turning, she saw Jess, knapsack on his back.

"So you're actually going to school today?" she asked skeptically.

"So you're actually back together with Dean?" Jess responded. Rory stared at her shoes, hiding a smile.

"Yeah," she said, blushing. "We worked it out."

"Did you actually work it out or just make out?" Jess teased. Rory looked up, her cheeks burning. "I'm going to miss my bus," she told him.

"Whatever," Jess said. He turned the corner, and Rory continued straight. When she got to the bus stop she found Dean waiting there for her. His whole face lit up wit a smile when he saw her.

"Hey you," he said.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, giving him a quick kiss.

"Come on," he said, threading his fingers through hers. "After last night, that's all I get?" Rory smiled, and they kissed again, this time softer and slower. "Much better," Dean whispered in her ear. "I missed you." Rory heard the bus pull up, and giving him one last lingering kiss, got onto the bus. She took a window seat, smiling as he waved to the departing bus.

He was there waiting for her when the bus brought her back that afternoon.

"Wow, you certainly seem to have a lot of time on your hands," she observed.

"Just trying to make up for lost time," he told her, kissing her lip softly. "Let's not fight again."

"Sounds good to me," Rory approved. "But I have to get home."

"No," Dean whined, stroking her hair. "Stay here, with me."

"Tempting," Rory murmured, "but I've got to help my dad. He's been with my mom all day, and could probably use some help."

"Can I come?" Dean asked. "Keep you company… meet your mom?"

Rory hesitated.

"I'm not sure that's the best idea," she confessed. She looked up at him. "I mean, my mom still thinks she sixteen, and you're just sooo good looking," she joked.

"Come on Rory," he pressed. Rory bit her lip.

"Okay fine," she conceded. Dean smiled, and he took Rory's books from her hands, placed his free arm around her waist, and together they set of towards her house.

"I'm ho-ome!" Rory called out as she entered the foyer.

"Hey kiddo," Chris called from the kitchen.

Rory threw her bag on the floor and made her way to her parents, Dean following closely behind her.

"Hey Mom, Dad." They smiled, and then they seemed to notice Dean. Chris looked nervously at Lorelai, as if nervous to see how she would react, but her expression of passive interest didn't change. She just kept smiling at them.

"Everyone, this is Dean," Rory introduced. She hesitated. "My boyfriend," she added. Lorelai registered mild surprise. Chris nodded, shaking Dean's hand.

"Nice to meet you finally," he said. "I've heard a lot about you."

"Same here," Dean responded, smiling.

"Boy friend, huh?" Lorelai questioned. She eyed Dean up and down playfully. "Well, I forgot how fun it was to be sixteen. All this grownup stuff is getting boring and mundane."

"So, Mexican food tonight?" Chris suggested.

"I'll go pick it up," Dean volunteered.

"Wow, what a gentlemen," Lorelai commented.

"Your daughter has very good taste," Chris assured her. Dean laughed, grabbed the twenty Chris handed to him, kissed Rory on the cheek, and headed out the door.

"Well that was the most awkward kiss I've ever seen," Lorelai declared as the door slammed shut. "No offense."

"He just feels uncomfortable in front of you guys," Rory defended him.

"I hope that's the case. Otherwise I feel bad for you," Lorelai snorted. Rory rolled her eyes.

"I'm going into my room to do some homework until he comes back," she announced, and then barricaded herself in her sanctuary. She plopped onto her bed, pulling a book and pen towards her. Soon she was lost in the world of American History. It took a few minutes for her to register the consistent tapping on her window. First she paused, looking up from her book to make sure it was coming from her window. Then she pushed herself up from the bed and sauntered over to her window. Pulling up the shades, she saw Jess, his thin jacket wrapped tightly around his body, his cheeks red from the cold.

"Jess!" she pushed her window up, and leaned over the sill. "What are you doing here?"

He held out a book.

"I never gave this back to you," he said.

"You couldn't give it to me via the front door?" she asked taking it.

"What fun would that be?" he shrugged. Rory sighed. They stood on opposite sides of the window for aa few long moments, with no reason to linger but no desire to leave. The cold air blew into Rory's room, making her shiver.

"So how are things at Luke's?" Rory asked, wrapping her arms around herself for warmth.

"Quiet," Jess told her. Rory nodded.

"Jess?"

"Yeah?"

Rory hesitated.

"Why did you really come?" Jess was silent.

"I don't see you anymore," he admitted finally.

"I moved into a different house, not a different State…or even town," she pointed out.

"Yeah but still, you're one of the only people I can actually stand," he said.

"And I'll continue to stand you," she promised. "You've got the coffee, remember?"

Jess smiled.

"Come on," he said. Rory looked around, confused.

"What do you mean?"

"Sneak out," he pressed, gesturing towards her window. "It's still early."

"I can't," Rory protested.

"Why not Rory?" Jess whined.

"Because Dean is coming over and we're eating dinner in like a minute." Jess rolled his eyes.

"Come on, what would you rather, a fake Mexican dinner, or a night out on the town?" he tempted her. Rory gestured helplessly.

"My hands are tied," she apologized. Jess started backing away from the window.

"One of these day's you're going to have to learn to break free," he told her, before turning and stealing away into the night.

* * *

The more you reviews, the fasted the next chapter goes up! Sorry this took a while... i had to finish an article for my school newspaper before i let myself write this... ;-)


	11. Living, Really Living

Hey guys, i know it's been waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too long. Between the flu, my birthday, an my sis's wedding, (and a little bit of writers block) i hope you guys will 4 give me, and keep reading. I know that you prob don't want 2 go back to all the previous chapters to figure out whats going on, so I'm gonna do my best to give you and overview right here.

**Prologue:** Rory an Lorelai get into an accident and Lorleai is comatose. Rory goes to Live with Luke.

**C****hap 1:** two years later, Lorelai is still comatose, and Rory and Luke have fallen into a comfortable routine. Rory is dating Dean. Jess comes to live with Luke. He is curious about Rory, but she doesn't want to talk about why she lives at Luke's.

**Chap 2**: Rory and Jess get used to living together. Jess discovers an album of Rory and her mom, and Rory finds him and angrily kicks him out of her room. she goes to visit her mother, where she speaks to the still figure.

**Chap 3**: Jess follows Rory to one of her hospital visits and finds out the truth.

**Chap 4:** Rory finds him and is furious. She admits that she didn't want him to feel sorry for her, and she forgives him. a few weeks later, Rory asks jess to drive her to the hospital, where she takes him into to "meet" Lorelai. She says really nice things about him. he goes outside for air, and they kiss.

**Chap 5:** As soon as the kiss is over, Rory freaks out and demands Jess take her home. She feels guilty about lying to Dean andshe tells him about the kiss. Dean confronts jess at school and the get into a fistfight. When Luke is picking up Jess from the principle's office they get a call to come to the hospital because Lorelai is dying. Luke picks Roryup from school and they head over. However, instead of dying, Lorelai wakes up with amnesia.

**Chap 6:** Lorelai can't remember anything since she was sixteen, so Luke calls Christopher, who comes and tells Lorelai a little bit about her life. Rory and Dean have a big fight.

**Chap 7:** Rory brings Lorelai the album with pictures of them growing up, and she tells Lorelai that she's been living with Luke. Shocked, Lorelai confronts Chris about why Rory doesn't live with him. Chris admits that he hasn't been stable enough to be a good father, but that he is ready to be here for Lorelai and Rory now. He asks Rory if she wants to move back home with him and her mom, and she readily agrees.

**Chap 8:** Jess gets upset when he lears that Rory is moving out and picks a fight with her. she and her dad prepare the house for Lorelai's homecoming, and they have a nice dinner. Rory goes out to pick up a cake, and on the way home she trips and ruins the cake outside of Dean's house and Dean comes outside. Evreything that has been happening has built up onside Rory and she ends up breaking down and sobbing. Dean takes her inside where they talk for a long time. As she is leaving, they start kissing, and at the end she realizes that Jess has been watching from across the street the whole time. She goes back home. After dinner, Lorelai announces she is ready for bed, but she finds her room without any of them showing her, indicating that somewhere she still remembers.

**Chap 9:** Lorelai meets Luke. Jess asks Rory about her night with Dean, to which Rory happily admits that they are back together. When she gets back from school, Dean asks if he could go home and meet her mom. Rory reluctantly agrees. When they get to her house, Dean offers to pick up the food. Rory goes into her room to do some homework while she waits, and Jess comes to her window. He complains that since Rory has moved out, they don't spend anytime together, and he asks her to sneak out with him, but she replies that she can't.

Whew! I'm out of breath! And that is where we left off, and where we will continue... don't forget to review!

And now....

**Chapter 10: Living, Really Living.**

Rory stared out the window at Jess's retreating figure, the breeze from the window kissing her bare arms.

"Hey, what are you looking at?" With a start, Rory whirled around. Dean stood there, his massive height filling her doorway.

"N-nothing," she told him, flashing him a smile.

"Okay, well, dinner's here," he announced.

"I'll be there in minute." She told him. Dean ducked out of her room. She heard him laughing with her parents. Taking one last deep breath of the cold, wild air, she reached up and pulled her window down. It shut with a snap.

After dinner was over, Dean had left, and Rory had retired to her room to study, Lorelai and Chris lounged on the couch in the den.

"Dean seems really nice," Lorelai commented. Chris nodded.

"Yeah, he does."

Lorelai sighed deeply.

"What?" Chris asked warily, throwing her a sidelong glance.

"I just don't think Rory likes him as much as she should."

"She's a smart girl. She'll figure it out eventually."

"Teenage love," Lorelai laughed. "So complicated, so innocent."

"Just like ours was," Chris said, leaning in towards her. Lorelai gave another laugh and glance down at her lap, as if half-expecting to see a pregnant stomach protruding. She looked up at Christopher.

"We were anything but innocent," she said. Chris grinned.

"We were amazing together," he contradicted. He leaned in, and their lips met in a soft kiss. They lingered for a moment, and Chris went for a more passionate kiss. Lorelai pulled back. "What?" Chris asked, disappointed.

Lorelai stared at her hands. "It's just that… well," she looked up at him, "you're old." She bit her lip nervously, not sure how that last comment would make him react.

"So are you," he pointed out, confused.

"Yeah I know," she said. "That is, intellectually I know. But in my mind I'm still sixteen. Every time I walk past a mirror and see myself I do a double take. You've grown up," Lorelai told him. "And so did I, except that the difference is that non of my maturing counts because it's all lost in the abyss."

Chris nodded, trying to understand. He pulled back, tucking a piece of stray hair behind her ear. "Well, you let me know when you grow up. I'll still be here," he promised.

Lorelai smiled. "I'm glad you're Rory's father," she said. She rested her head on his chest, and the two of them focused their racing thoughts towards the television.

The next day, Rory and her dad left the house while Lorelai slept, and made their ay over to Luke's for breakfast. They settled themselves at a table.

"I'll go get muffins," Rory said, getting up and heading over to the counter.

Jess was working the cash register. He grinned as Rory selected two muffins.

"Missed a hell of a night last night," he informed her.

"Did I now?" Rory answered, "I'm glad you had fun. That makes two of us."

"You don't know what real living is, Gilmore," Jess said.

"We'll see about that." she handed him the money.

"Yeah, we will," he challenged, handing her the change.

Throughout all her classes the rest of the day, Jess's words echoed through her head. _ You don't know what real living is, Gilmore._ Maybe Jess was right. But she had had enough turmoil in her life for a while, and she had satiated her appetite for adventure for a long time. Right now her goal was focused on trying to get everything back to normal, and then maybe she could shake it up again.

"Yo, Mary!" Tristan waved his hand in front of her face. Rory came to with a start, realizing she had spaced out while she was putting books into her locker. "What genius thought are you thinking?" He leaned on the locker next to her.

"That I wish you leave me alone Tristan," she told him.

"Tsk, tsk," Tristan mocked. "What a waste of brainpower. Just think, in the time it took you to think that, you could have been thinking up the cure for cancer."

"I'll try to remember that next time you're annoying me," Rory promised, shutting her locker and turning the lock. Tristan laughed, and turned to go.

"Hey, Tristan?" Rory had no idea why she was asking _him_ of all people.

"Ah, her highness calls."

"What do you think real living is?" she braced herself to be ridiculed.

Tristan leaned back onto the locker, sighing outwardly. "Well Mary, if you're asking for my _humble_ opinion, real living… I would say it means having no regrets."

"No regrets…" Rory pondered.

"Yeah, like never second guessing yourself."

Rory considered this. The bell rang.

"Just in time," Tristan muttered, "this whole deep conversation thing is kinda creeping me out."

Rory rolled her eyes and headed to her next class.

Lorelai sat in her home. She heard Chris come into the door accompanied by a woman. She heard her laugh, a loud, bubbly laugh. She turned as the came into the room. Accompanying Chris was a short, stout woman, with dark blonde hair and a vibrant face.

"Hey Lor," Chris greeted. He gestured to the lady. "This is Sookie. You guys used to work together at the Independence Inn. Sookie's the worlds greatest cook."

"Stop it." Sookie blushed. "Hey Lorelai," she greeted her old friend.

Lorelai smiled politely at the woman who, to her, was stranger.

"Okay, well I have a couple of things to take care of," Chris announced. "So I'll leave you two to get reacquainted."

Sookie smiled vibrantly as she took a seat on the couch next to Lorelai.

"How are you doing?" she asked her kindly.

"A little out of whack, to be honest," she admitted. "For everyone else, I've been out for two years. For me, it's been sixteen."

Sookie nodded understandingly.

"Come on, let's get out of here," she said, gesturing to the confining walls of the den. "I'll take you around the town, show you all the places we used to love. It'll be fun!"

Having nothing better to do, Lorelai let Sookie lead her out into the cold air.

They walked around the town square.

"That's Taylor," Sookie said, indicating a man directing a bunch of guys where to hang decorations. "He's the town councilman. I think right now they're setting up for the end of winter carnival. We used to go there every year with Rory," she reminisced. Lorelai smiled. "That's the grocery store he owns" she guided, indicating Dosey's market across the street. "There's Fran's Pastries," she went on. "Fran is the sweetest old woman. And that…"  
"Is Luke's," Lorelai cut her off. Sookie registered mild surprise. "I met him already," she told her. "I wanted to meet the man who practically raised my daughter."

"Luke's a great guy. A little odd at times, but he has a heart of gold."

Lorelai nodded. "I know. I'll never be able to thank him for taking Rory in."

"How's that going by the way?" Sookie asked. "You and Rory, I mean."

"I can't believe that she' _my_ daughter. I mean, she's the exact opposite of what I was."

Sookie laughed. "Yeah, she's a pretty amazing kid. You did a really good job raising her."

They were now standing in front of a pretty, small house.

"This is where I live," Sookie told her. She went to the minivan parked in front and opened the door to the driver's side. "Get in," she instructed. "There's something I want to show you."

Lorelai complied, and it was not long before they into the parking lot of a refined-looking inn. Sookie led her up the front steps, into and through a door bearing a sign that said _Independence Inn._ They entered into a cozy lobby, where a few customers lounged on the couches reading magazines. A small black man stood behind a polished front desk, yelling into the phone in a heavy French accent. He slammed down the phone angrily and turned to them.

"Ahhh, Sookie," he complained. "Dis party we are catering iz driving me up ze wall!" Only then did he notice Lorelai standing next to Sookie. He stopped, stared at her a minute, and then burst out.

"Oh my! Lorelai!" he gave her a hug, Then drew away awkwardly.

"This is Michelle," Sookie explained to a shy Lorelai. "The three of us were planning on opening our own in someday." Lorelai smiled, imagining the three of them as a team. She didn't remember the first thing about running an Inn. "Come," Sookie commanded, pulling her by the hand. "There's one more place I want you to see."

She led her past the front desk, through the kitchen, and out into the back. There, among the flowers, was a small… well Lorelai wasn't sure what to call it. It looked like a miniature house, a little too nice to be referred to as a hut. Sookie led her to it, and pushed open the door, which creaked as it was aroused from its lifelong rest. They entered a large space. The bedroom, kitchen, and bathroom were all combined. There were no doors separating the areas. The sun shone though, reflecting off the dust floating around the air.

"This is where you and Rory first lived when you came to work at the Inn. You guys shared this little apartment until you bought your house in Stars Hollow. "

Lorelai was silent as she walked around. This place felt the most familiar of all the disorienting places she had been so far. As if in a trance, she walked about the room, running her hands over the bedpost, examining the patters on the wall. Curiously, she stopped at a burn mark on the wall right behind the stove.

"You did that the first and last time you tried to cook," Sookie told her.

Lorelai ran her fingers over it, and then pulled back, as if it was still scalding hot. She turned to Sookie slowly.

"Thank you for bringing me here," she said.

"You're welcome sweetie," Sookie answered kindly. She seemed to sense that Lorelai wanted to linger. "I'm going to head on inside, you take your time down here. Come find me when you're ready to leave ok?" With one last smile, she turned out the door, leaving Lorelai with the ghosts of her past.

Rory was in her usual position doing in her room, her homework spread out before her. Her dad, despite her ridicules, was stirring something on the stove, and she had to admit, it smelled pretty good. She heard the front door open, and headed out of her room. Her mother stood there, looking awkward in her unfamiliar setting. She still had her coat on.

"Hey," Rory greeted her. "Dad's making dinner, it'll be ready soon. There's no telling how that'll turn out," she joked.

"I heard that!" Chris called from the kitchen.

"I actually need to talk to the two of you," Lorelai said, not meeting Rory's eyes.

"O.., um, ok, then come into the kitchen."

Chris was standing above a pot, a red apron tied around his waist, is sleeves rolled up above his elbows, exposing his strong muscles.

"What's up Lor?" he asked. "How was your day with Sookie?"

"It was good. That's what I needed to talk to you about actually," she began.

"Go ahead," Chris prompted.

"Well, she said, taking a seat at the round table, "you guys have been amazing throughout all of this. You've been so kind, and loving, and patient as I regain my life back."

"But…" Chris added.

"But I feel like I'm trying to play the role of a life I don't know. It took my old self sixteen years to come to this point. I can't expect, and you can't expect me, to do it in a few months. Which is why I've made a decision," she announced. "I'm going to move back into the house behind the Inn, and work there as a maid. I'm going back to the beginning. "

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The next Chapter will be up much sooner! As long as i get Reviews....;-)


	12. Leaving, Learning, Living

Hey, sorry again for the wait. Hope you enjoy this chapter. I don't want ot spoil it but i have a feeling alot of my reviewers are going to find what they've been waiting for in this chapter. Read and Review!

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It was raining.

The rain streamed down Rory's face and back as she helped hr father unload the suitcases. She trudged through the muddy grass, lugging the heaving load behind her. It splattered her jeans as she trudged towards the miniature house. Lorelai stood at the door, as if waiting to welcome them into her new home. Rory marched past her, and placed the valise at the foot of her bed.

Chris followed, placing the suitcase he was carrying next to hers.

"Thank you," Lorelai said quietly. "I realize this is probably a lot harder for you than it is for me."

"Don't worry about it," Rory mumbled. The three of them stood awkwardly.

"Chris, can you give us a moment?" Lorelai asked. "I want to say a proper goodbye." Chris nodded solemnly, and disappeared into the rain.

"Rory," she began, "I'm sorry if I disappointed you. I can tell what you really wanted. Once I woke up, you wanted us to be able to be a family again, for things to go back to the way they have always been. From what I hear around the town, we had a pretty special relationship." Rory nodded, examining the watermarks in the wood floor. "Rory, look at me!" Lorelai pleaded. Rory picked up her head slowly, revealing the tears she had been trying to mask.

"Yeah, we did," she told her mother. "You were my best friend, the one person I could always count on."

"I wish with all my heart I could give that back to you," Lorelai confessed. "But the way I am right now, I can't. I think you know I can't. I don't know you, but most importantly, I don't know who I am. All the experiences that I went through, having you at sixteen, moving away from my parents, coming here and meeting all the people I did, I can see that that's what made me the type of mother I was, the type of person I was. But all those experiences are gone now, and with them, the influence they had on me. I want to give you back what we had before, but I can't just jump back into a life I don't know. I have to go back to the beginning, and hope it will lead me back to the same place." Rory nodded, tucking her hair behind her ears.

"I wish you luck with that."

"I don't want you to feel like I'm running away," Lorelai continued. "You can always come here, in fact, I_ want_ you to visit. I need to get to know you. I want to reestablish the connection we had, so we should work on it slowly. Ok?"

Rory nodded, and tried to smile. Lorelai pulled her into an embrace.

"I have the most amazing kid in the world," she proclaimed. She watched her daughter walk out, and sat down on her bed. Chris came in.

"So, are you all set?" he asked.

Lorelai nodded. "Do you think she hates me?" she asked.

"Of course not," Chris assured her. "Rory is a very rational girl. I'm sure it hurts her, but I think on some level she understands."

"I hope so," she said. "Thanks for all you've done."

Chris walked over to her, and kissed the top of her head.

"Good luck, Lorelai Gilmore," he murmured. "I hope you find what you're looking for."

Dean and Rory sat on a bench in the town square. Dean leaned in for another kiss, but Rory didn't open up to him. He sighed and leaned back.

"Okay, what is it?" he asked.

Rory said nothing, just stared at the ground, twisting her hands.

"Rory…" he coaxed her.

"It's just, I'm just realizing now that I'm never going to have my mom back," she confided.

"You do have her back, it's only different than you expected," Dean pointed out.

"I don't really have her back though," Rory argued. "I mean she doesn't know who I am, and now she's leaving me." She squeezed her eyes shut to prevent the tears that were threatening to push their way through.

"Yeah, but come on Rory," Dean said, frustrated, "can you blame her?"

Rory stared at him.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"She's so lost. All of a sudden she's thrown into a world she doesn't ever remember being a part of, and she had to figure stuff out."

"But I was right there," Rory said angrily. "I was right there the whole time to help her figure it out! Why wasn't that good enough for her?"

"Because not everything can turn out perfectly the way you want it to!" Dean bit back, his words sinking into her like acid. Rory stood up and whipped around to stare down at him.

"Perfectly the way I wanted?" she hissed. "This is so far from perfect, they're not even part of the same universe! Perfect would have been no accident, no coma. I f I couldn't have that than at least give me a normal mother after not having one for two years. I have nothing now!" she cried. "My mother is gone. All that's left is a confused sixteen-year-old girl trapped inside the body of my mother, who she does not want to be! You're going to sit here and tell me to deal with it because things aren't exactly the way I want them?" She stormed away from him, her long brown hair whipping at her back.

Jess was sprawled across the bed in Rory's old room, on arm holding the book, the other supporting his head. He heard someone enter the apartment, but continued reading, lost in the world far away. He sensed someone standing at his door. Startled, he looked up and saw Rory standing there. Her eyes were wide and wild, as if she wasn't really seeing him.

"So, you took over my room?" she asked playfully, but there was no smile on her face.

"It beats sleeping on a mattress on the floor," Jess answered. It was silent. "Have you been crying?" Jess asked, sitting up.

Rory ignored the question. "Let's go somewhere," she said.

"What? Where?" Jess asked, staring at her. Rory folded her arms.

"I don't know, anywhere. Let's just get out and drive," she pleaded.

Jess was out of his bed without any more questions.

"Let's go," he said, grabbing his keys.

They sped down the highway. Rory turned the radio on full blast, and let the window down so the wind did battle with her hair.

"So where are we going?" Jess asked again.

"I don't know," Rory said loudly above the music. "Far away." Jess looked at her in disbelief and grinned.

"I know," he said. He got off at the next exit and pulled into the first train station that he saw. He parked, and pulled Rory out of the car and up to the ticket window. He handed money to the drowsy teenager selling tickets. "Two tickets to New York," he requested. He looked at Rory, who grinned back at him, and let out a wild laugh.

"The next train's in five minutes," she told them, handing them the tickets.

As soon as they settled into their seats in the train, Jess turned to Rory.

"Alright, you have to stop holding out on me," he said. "What's with the sudden madness?"

Rory leaned back in her seat, and for the endurance of the ride they talked about what had happened.

"So she just left?" Jess asked at the end. Rory nodded. "Ouch," he sympathized. Rory nodded, willing herself not to lose it again.

"Yeah, it hurts," she admitted. Jess leaned close and whispered in her ear.

"Not tonight," he promised. Rory's eyes met his, and they were sparkling with anticipation.

"So what's in New York?" Rory asked. Jess's eyes widened.

"What's in New York? It's the city that never sleeps!" he told her.

Rory stared out the window in anticipation. Before she knew they were pulling into Penn station. Rory was amazed at the rush of people whizzing by in every single direction.

"Come on," Jess tugged her arm and led her up and out onto 7th avenue. It was dark by now, but the brilliant lights of the city lit up the night. "Let's go," Jess pulled Rory alongside him. Rory let Jess drag her along as she turned her head in every direction, trying to take it all in.

"Whoa!" she exclaimed. "I've never seen the city like this!"

"You haven't lived yet."

"So I've been told."

Jess laughed he led her down Seventh Avenue, and down 37th street. Finally they turned left, and Rory gasped.

"Welcome to Broadway, Rory," he announced with a flourish.

"Oh my gosh," she breathed, her eyes sparkling just like all the lights around her. Jess watched her take everything in.

"Oh, can we see a show?" she begged.

"They're all closed now," Jess said, glancing at his watch. Rory whipped around to face him.

"What time is it?" she demanded.

"Ten," Jess answered, putting his arm around her.

"My dad is going to be freaking out." She pulled out her cell phone and dialed.

"You're seriously going to tell him you hopped on a train to New York?" Jess mused. "And you think he'll be less freaked out then?"

"I don't know!" Rory said, panicking. She heard the click. "Hi dad?" She paused as her dad replied.

"Hi I'm in…" she paused. "I'm at Lane's house. She needed help studying. I'm really sorry I didn't call." She paused again. "Yeah she has a history test and she asked me to help her out. It's gonna be a long night so don't wait up for me." She listened again. "Okay. Love you too." She snapped her phone shut. "I just lied to my Dad," she announced in disbelief.

"Wow, you're a wild one now," Jess teased. Rory blushed.

They set off again through the streets of New York City. Soon they entered Central Park. They walked around, and finally settled by the water.

"You're amazing," Rory told that.

Jess laughed and contradicted her.

"There are those who would disagree."

Rory turned her face towards him.

"No really, you knew exactly how to make me happy. You know exactly how to make me forget."

"I guess you could say I have a gift," he murmured. Rory leaned back on him. They sat like that, just watching the water moved silently across. Rory stroked the grass with her fingers. Finally she looked up at him, her blue eyes sparkling like the water.

"This is perfection," she said, and she kissed him lightly on his chin, then moved her lips softly up to his lips. He allowed her for a moment, but then he pulled back, holding her away from him. Her eyes creased with confusion.

"What?" she asked.

"What about Dean? As much I want, I can't let you do this again, because I know you would just end up hating me, and I don't know if I could take that."

Rory shook her head closing her eyes.

"I don't want Dean anymore," she whispered.

"What are you talking about? I thought you loved him."

"He doesn't know how to make me happy anymore. He doesn't make me feel like this."

Jess didn't need much persuading. He leaned his head forward, and allowed Rory in.

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Yeah, I know... I went against one of fundamental rules and went against normal character in this one... but it had to happen sometime.

Instructions for new chapter:

1. Press review.

2. Tell me what you think!

3. Submit Review.


	13. New Beginnings

Round of applause for not taking three years to put up this chapter! yay! Thanks so much to all those who have been faithfully reading and reviewing. To the newcomers, welcome and don't forget to review this story! i Really hope every one likes it!

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Rory rolled out of bed the next morning as her alarm clock rang irritatingly in her ear. She felt groggy after only a few hours of sleep. She and Jess hadn't gotten home until two in the morning. With blurry eyes, she threw on her Chilton uniform and ran a brush through her hair. She threw it back into a careless pony and slipped on her shoes. She heard her dad from the kitchen.

"Want to stop by Luke's for some breakfast before you catch your bus?"

"Okay," Rory shouted sleepily. She turned back to her mirror, taking a little more care to straighten out her ponytail and adjust her skirt. As a last touch, she smeared on some lip-gloss. She took once last glance in the mirror and a deep breath, and then she headed out.

"You okay there?" her dad asked her on their way over to the diner. Rory was fidgeting nervously with her hands, and she kept glancing around her.

"Yeah I'm fine," Rory assured him. Chris raised his eyebrows skeptically, but wisely said nothing.

They entered the diner, the little bell above the door announcing their arrival. Luke saw them and came over.

"Hey, good morning," he greeted them.

"Morning," Rory said back. She let out a big yawn.

"You sound tired," Chris said, concerned. "How late were you at Lane's last night?"

Luke turned to Rory, giving her an odd look that made her uncomfortable.

"Um, I I don't really remember," she said. "It was pretty late. Should we find a seat?"

"Oh yeah sure," Luke jumped in, but he did not take his eyes off Rory. "Table over there is free."

"Thanks," Chris said, sitting down. He was completely oblivious to the staring contest going on above his head. Luke left to go help more customers, and Rory sat across from her dad, facing the counter.

"So, do you have any tests today?" Christopher asked his daughter. Rory spotted Jess come down the stairs, his hair slightly mussed, as if he had just rolled out of bed. Theirs eyes locked, and they both looked away shyly. Rory saw Jess trying to hide a grin.

"Sorry?' Rory said, turning back to her father. "Oh um, I have a math quiz today, but it's pretty simple. I think I'm going to get a muffin," she said distractedly. "Do you want anything from the counter?"

"I'm fine, thanks," her dad insisted. Rory floated over to the counter.

"Hey," she greeted, leaning across the counter.

"Hello," Jess responded. He reached for her hand but Rory pulled back.

"My Dad is watching," she hissed through her teeth.

"So?" Jess shrugged. "Hasn't he ever seen you hold a guy's hand before?"

"Yeah, in fact, he's seen me hold Dean's hand," she elaborated. "And as far as he knows, that's the guy whose hand I should still be holding."

"Well, you're planning on telling him eventually right?" Jess asked.

"Of course," Rory assured him, then added under her breath, "As soon as I tell Dean." She could've sworn she saw a smile flash across Jess's face but, to his credit, he masked it very well.

"That'll be an interesting conversation," he mused. "Hey Dean, sorry, but I ran away with your worst enemy last night, and now I'm breaking up with you." He shook his head in mock sympathy. "Poor guy."  
"Stop gloating!" Rory chided, smacking his arm. "You're making me feel like a terrible person." He quieted down.

"You don't regret last night though, do you?" he checked.

"Of course not," Rory promised. "Do you?" she asked. Jess reached for Rory's favorite muffin. He leaned in towards her ear as he handed it to her.

"Never," he promised. Rory smiled and took the muffin. All of a sudden Luke was on top of them.

"Jess, go take the pancakes off the oven," he commanded. Jess threw up his hands in mock subservience.

"Yes master," he said. _Later_, he mouthed to Rory. Luke turned to Rory, leaning his hands on the counter.

" So where were you last night?" he asked her.

Rory blinked."What?"

Luke sighed, frustrated.

"Rory, you and I both know Mrs. Kim wouldn't allow anyone over past seven O'Clock on a school night." Rory said nothing. "So where did you go?" he continued. His eyes fllowed Jess out of the kitchen as he dropped a plate of pancakes onto the counter. He turned back to Rory. "You were with Jess, weren't you? He wasn't home all night last night, and he refused to tell me where he was. He was with you, wasn't he? Where did you gys go huh?"

Rory back away from the counter. "Um, my bus is going to be here soon, and my dad's waiting for me," she said, avoiding the question. "But you should give the Russians a call; I hear they're looking for spies." She turned her back on him and went back to her table.

Dean was not holding his usual vigil for her at the bus stop. She took a seat and pulled out her current novel. She felt someone gently stroke her hair and turned to see Jess standing over her. She smiled.

"Hey," she greeted, this time letting her emotions show on her face.

"I really want to kiss you again," Jess said, stroking her face with his finger. Rory pushed away his finger.

"You know we can't do that now," she reminded him. "It would be cruel for Dean to find out that way." She sighed. "Ugh I'm really going to hurt him," she lamented regretfully, closing her eyes. Jess sat down next to her, swinging his backpack onto his lap.

"But you're happy about this, right?"

Rory looked down at her hands. "Of course. I just wish it wouldn't be so complicated. I just wish we could be happy, without making anybody sad."

"And that's what makes you so amazing," Jess said, his eyes sparkling. He was using all the strength he had to keep himself from kissing her all over. Rory blushed, but held his gaze steady.

"There are those that would disagree," she said with a sad grin. Her bus pulled up and Jess helped her onto it.

In all of her classes she was distracted, not to mention tired, and her gaze always seemed to drift to the window, as if pulled there by a magnetic force. The winter was strating to give way to spring, and the tree bore both frost and blossoms. However, Rory didn't see any of this when she looked out the window. Instead she saw the small waves of the lake in the park, the moon reflected in its ripples. She saw her and Jess leaning side by side, the only two people in the world.

"Yo Mary! Space in!" Tristan was grinning three inches from her face. She pulled back.

"What do you want?" she asked, annoyed to be pulled from her bliss. Tristan was giving her a weird look.

"Mr. Medina just assigned us as partners for the next English project," he told her. "Weren't you listening?"

"O great," Rory groaned.

"Don't get too excited Mary," he teased. "I can't believe you were spacing out in class!" he observed.

"I wasn't spacing out," she defended. "I was just… just…" she opened her book frustrated.

"Wow, and you're crabby too."

"I'm just tired," she grumbled.

"Why Mary? Were you out late partying with the rest of your monestary?"

"No I was just… living," she supplied, smiling.

Lorelai buttoned the last button and smoothed out the pleats in her maids' uniform. She gazed into the full-length mirror as she tied her hair back.

"Time to start over," she told her reflection. She went out and crossed the grass to the back of the Inn.

"Good morning sweetie," Sookie greeted her as she walked in. "There are pancakes in the kitchen if you want some breakfast." She smiled brightly at her long-lost friend.

"Thanks," Lorelai said, smiling at the warmth. "I should probably get started though."

"Oh, come on, there's plenty of time after pancakes," she insisted, pulling the helpless Lorelai into the kitchen with her. Lorelai decided not to put up a fight, and so she sat at the counter as Sookie piled blueberry pancakes high on her plate and then topped it off with a big scoop of ice cream. Lorelai took the fork she was supplied with and dug in.

"Whoa! This is amazing!" she exclaimed. Sookie smiled.

"You still love my food. That hasn't changed," she reflected nostalgically. Lorelai smiled. "So anyway," she went on, "you're going to be shadowing Lisa today. She'll show you around and help you learn the routine." Lorelai nodded to indicate she understood. "You ready?"

"I hope so," Lorelai said. She went back to digging through her pancakes.

"What's the matter?" Sookie asked.

"Huh?" Lorelai looked up, confused. Sookie smiled indulgingly.

"Honey, you might not remember, but I can still tell when you're unhappy." Lorelai stopped eating and set down her spoon. She turned to Sookie.

"I'm just afraid I'm not going to find whatever it is I'm looking for. What then?" she speculated, her brow furrowed. Sookie stroked her back.

"You'll find it," she assured her. "You always find of way of getting whatever it is you're seeking." She gave her a quick, tight hug. Lorelai finished the pancakes and went ot join Lisa the maid to be shown around her new life.

_Knock, knock. _ Lorelai opened the door to reveal Christopher.

"Hey," he greeted, stepping into the house.

Lorelai smiled and stepped back to let him in. "Hi! What brings you here?"

"I just though I would check up on you," he said casually. "How was your first day?"

Lorelai sat back down in the chair she had been occupying before the intrusion, and indicated for him to do the same. He made himself comfortable on the bed.

"It's hard work being a maid," she related. "And today I only observed! I don't know if I can do this."

"You can do it," he assured her. "You and I both know that. It'll be hard in the beginning, but then you'll do what you always do. You'll find your groove and keep going. Rory's a lot like that too you know."

"How is she doing?" Lorelai asked about her daughter while they were on the topic.

"She's okay. You know, she's pretty busy with school and her boyfriend. She got home pretty late last night because she was tutoring her friend Lane."

Lorelai smirked. "Tutoring? You actually bought that? that's the oldest excuse in the book," she teased. "What it really means is 'I was out late last night, and it was spontaneous which is why I had no time to think up a bette excuse.'"

Chris shook his head. "Rory's not like that." Lorelai raised her eyes skeptically.

"I'm pretty sure every kid is like that," she argued.

"Not ours," Chris assured her. "Rory isn't like other kids, and I'm not just saying that because I'm her father. She's honest to the bone, and always does the right thing. She's smart and hardworking, and a dedicated friend. Everyone who knows her loves her, and she's sweet and patient with everyone." Lorelai held up her hands.

"K, first of all, would you stop eulogizing my kid? Second of all, there is _no_ way this is my daughter you're talking about."  
Chris laughed. "It's is. The one and only."

"Whoa," was all Lorelai could manage. "I guess I got got pretty lucky."

"Yeah, she's pretty amazing," he agreed. "We did good," he observed, reaching over and gripping her shoulder. Lorelai glanced at his hand uncomfortably.

"I better get back to work for the afternoon shift," she announced, standing up. Chris stood up with her and together they walked outside. " It was really sweet of you to stop by. Goodnight," she waved, heading up to the Inn. She felt Chris grab hole of her arm.

"Lorelai?" he said. "I just think you should know that I think you're doing great. I'm really proud of you. You are _amazing._" He softly kissed her, then gazed at her and softly stroked her hair. He turned and headed across the grass and out of view.

* * *

a/n: i know most of you were probably not happy with that kiss. I'm sorry, but without giving too much away, you guys shouldn't be too worried. I am not a big fan of Lorelai and Chris myself. SO read review, and let me know what you think so I can put up the next chapter soon. I kow that alot of you are reading this without giving me your feedback! Please take a second to tell me what you think, positive or negative!


	14. Heart Breaker

Sorry for the long wait, I promise i haven't forgotten about this story, I've just been swamped like crazy! Just keep reading and let me know what you think!

* * *

Rory sat in the small coffee shop, twirling her hair slowly around her finger. The walls were painted a the same shade of pink as the Pepto-Bismol bottles. Up by the cash register, the owner of the shop had decorated the counter with little miniature cats and elves. The ceiling was decorated with pink flowers and green vines. The whole room was quickly giving Rory a headache. This was specifically why she had chosen this place to talk to Dean. It was a place neither of them ever frequented, so the bad memories that would soon be associated with the place wouldn't ruin their daily routines.

At the tinkling of the bell Rory looked up, and she was struck once again by how tall Dean was. He saw Rory and headed over to her table. He settled uncomfortably in the small rickety chair, and Rory feared it would crack under him. They sat there awkwardly; the memory of their last fight hung between them.

"Hey," Dean started, cracking through the silence. He reached his hand across the table, but Rory did not take it. His eyes narrowed. Rory took a deep breath.

"Dean, a lot of things have changed over the past few week," she began slowly. I've gone through a lot, and my life changed drastically. And I know that you tried to be there, but you weren't. I needed someone to understand that I was angry and hurt and disappointed, and you couldn't do that for me."

"Rory, I-" Rory cut him off.

"I'm not angry at you Dean," she assured him. "I just think that we've both become different people, and we've grown apart. I don't think we are the great couple that we used to be. " Dean blinked, drawing his hand back to his side.

"Are we breaking up?" he asked incredulously. Rory nodded slowly. "I don't believe this," he said angrily.

"I'm sorry." Dean shook his head.

"I should've figured when you told me to meet you in this gd forsaken place," he muttered. He stood up, and stormed out of the coffee house. Rory sat at her table for a little while longer, then stood up and went through the door.

Jess was waiting for her on the sidewalk. When she came out, they both fell into step, walking side by side.

"So, how did it go?"

Rory sighed. "It went great," she mocked sarcastically. "It was a breakup, it was horrible." Jess was silent. He slid his arm around her shoulder, but Rory shook him off. He stopped walking, and she looked back. The look on his face clearly indicated he was hurt. "I'm sorry," Rory apologized. "I'm just feeling a little guilty right now."

"Well this isn't going to work if every time you look at me you feel guilty."

"Come on Jess, you know that's not how I meant it," Rory protested, walking back to stand next to him. "Give me a break Jess. I just broke up with my boyfriend of four months. And I'm not blaming you for what I did either. It's just not so easy for me."

"I thought you would be happy about this," Jess grumbled.

"I am," Rory insisted. "Just not right this second."

"Okay, whatever," he shrugged, pushing the issue aside. He brushed a stray piece of hair away from her face, and they continued walking.

They parted somberly at the corner, the conflict not satisfactorily resolved.

Lorelai entered the room, carrying a pile of freshly laundered sheets. Turning on the radio, she pulled the sheets off the slept-in bed. She set the new sheets on the bed, swaying softly to the music, and began humming quietly. She threw the curtains open, flooding the room with light. Lorelai smiled as the warm sunlight hit her face. She turned back to the room and began tiding up, singing along with the music of the radio. A knock on the door startled her. She whipped around, there, backward baseball cap and all, stood Luke.

"Hi," he said, stepping into the room. He lugged a heavy toolbox in his arm. "Sookie asked me to come by. Something about crooked drawers."

Lorelai pointed towards the mentioned piece, which was leaning comically towards on side. Luke got one his knees, setting down his toolbox to examine it.

"I didn't know you were also the Inn's handyman," Lorelai said, dusting the top of the T.V cabinet.

"I just do a couple of favors every now and then," Luke explained, digging around for his tools. He looked up at Lorelai. "How're you doing with your new job?"

"It's hard work," she supplied, sitting on the corner of the freshly-made bed. "But it keeps me busy, and everyone here is so nice, and patient, and Sookie's always ready to answer whatever questions I have."

"That's good," Luke said, fiddling around with the leg.

"Yeah. I have a lot of questions about you, you know."

Luke stopped what he was doing and looked up at her form the floor.

"Do you?"

Lorelai nodded.

"I can't really figure it out. What would cause a man, who apparently I was not dating at the time, raise my daughter?"

"Rory's special," Luke answered.

"That's not an answer," Lorelai pointed out.

"It's the best one I've got," Luke grunted, tightening the leg of the drawers. Lorelai bit her lip.

"She is pretty amazing," Lorelai reflected once again. "I got lucky."

Luke finished twisting the last screw in place. He picked up his toolbox and lifted himself from the ground.

"No you didn't," he said, coming up to Lorelai and laying a rough hand on her shoulder. "You raised her to be that way. _She_ got lucky."

Rory was lying on her back, staring up at the ceiling. She had school work calling her name but in a very uncharacteristic move she left it waiting in her bag. Her radio was playing, but she wasn't really listening to the music either. She just stared up at the ceiling, her thoughts taking her through bumps and loops.

There was a tapping at her window. She didn't have to turn her head to see who it was, but she did anyway. Jess stood there, his black coat neglected in favor of the slowly warming wheather.

She pulled herself out of her bed and opened the window. "If we keep doing this, then I'm going to have to change my name to Repunzul," she said.

"I wanted to see you," Jess shrugged.

"Well I don't think my hairs that strong, but come in if you want. My dad's not here." She stood back as Jess lifted himself over her windowsill.

"It makes life so much easier that your bedroom is on the ground floor," he pointed out.

"Just don't tell my dad that."

Jess grinned.

"Do you want food?" Rory offered. Jess shook his head.

"Look Rory, I was thinking about earlier today." He scratched his head. "And I realized I would be a pretty big idiot if I got annoyed at the fact that my girlfriend is sensitive and cares about other people, even if that includes her ex-boyfriend."

"Jess Mariano," Rory teased, "that almost sounded like an apology."

"Don't fool yourself," he warned.

Rory laughed. "That's the first time you called me your girlfriend," she pointed out. "I liked it."

Jess pulled her close to him.

"I liked it too," he agreed, running his hands through her soft hair. He leaned in and their lips met. Rory closed her eyes and put her arms around his neck, running her fingers through his soft hair. Jess held her head firm in his hands and leaned into her. All of a sudden they heard a noise in the front. The two of them paused, perking their ears. The sound came from a door opening.

"I thought Christopher wasn't home?" Jess whispered. Rory looked around in a panic.

"Well he wasn't. I don't know how he got home so fast!"

"Okay, then I guess it's back out the window for me." He leaned his hands on the sill, ready to lft himself over, but Rory put a hand out to stop him.

"No, he'll hear you!" she whispered frantically.

"So what do we do?"

"Rory?" Chris's voice was heard from the kitchen. Rory crossed her room and, before Jess could stop her, she had opened the door.

"I hope you like the CD," she said loudly. "Hi Dad." Her voice was totally normal. "Jess just came over to look at some music. You know how me and mom were on our "mission" to save the world from bad music."

Jess grinned at his girlfriend's genius. Chris was totally lost in her smile. Rory could tell him that she had committed murder and he would still think she's the most perfect little girl. Jess wasn't complaining as long as he was receiving the fringe benefits of having a girlfriend with very few rules. He had a feeling Lorelai would have been a little tougher, not so wrapped around her daughter's finger.

Chris reached out and shook Jess's hand.

"It's nice to meet you Jess," he smiled. Jess smiled back easily and turned to Rory.

"I'm going to get going," he said. "Um, thanks for the C-D." he patted his coat, pretending he had a disk in there. "Goodnight."

"So that was Jess?" Chris asked as the door snapped shut.

Rory nodded. "That was Jess."

"And Dean…?

"We broke up. I told you that already." She went to the cabinet and took out some paper plates.

"Aha," Christopher followed with the steaming fast food.

"So what did we get tonight?" Rory asked, setting the plates onto the table.

"Italian food."

"Yum."

"Hey kiddo," Chris hesitated but continued, "can I ask you something?"

Rory looked up from the silverware in her hand. "Sure."

"Would Lorelai have let you have Jess in your room?"

Rory paused for a long moment, thinking hard.

"No," she answered honestly. "She probably wouldn't."

"Ok." Chris said. He didn't feel anymore needed to be said. His point was made.

Lorelai opened the door to her small cottage and stepped inside. She opened the windows, put an old teapot on the stove, and headed into her bedroom. As she entered, she passed the mirror. She paused, and stood gazing at herself. She was dressed in her maid's uniform, her apron smooth around her small waist. Her hair was down, held away from her face by clips. Slowly she reached back and untied her apron. She hung it on the back of a chair. She took the clips out of her hair, and her hair fell over her shoulders. She turned away from the mirror and made her way to the bad. Then Lorelai sat down on the bed and cried.

Not my favorite chapter, but the next one is worth reading!

Review!!!!!!


	15. Dates and Fates

Hey. I'm really sorry. I hate making you giys wait because then a lot of people start to lose interest. I hope you guys can still get into it! It's pretty long this week. enjoy and tell me what you think!

* * *

_Her Chilton uniform felt stiff and confining. She tugged at the collar as she stepped out into the warm spring air. _

"_Hey Lorelai!" she turned around to see Beth walking towards her. Lorelai sighed. Beth was everything her own parents wanted her to be. She was top of the class, student body treasurer, and participated in all her parent's stupid charities. The only reason Lorelai tolerated her was because she had notes from every class, something she sorely lacked. Now she was walking fast towards Lorelai, her blond hair balance perfectly on her narrow shoulders. Lorelai looked for an escape, but found none. "Where'd you disappear to last night during the dance?"_

_Lorelai smiled at the memory of last nights spring dance. Her and Chris had indeed disappeared together halfway through the night. His car was a much more private spot. _

_She pretended to be confused. "What do you mean? I didn't go anywhere." Beth raised her eyebrows and giggled. _

"_Of course you didn't." Lorelai giggled with her,gagging on the inside. Beth winked at her and Lorelai felt a strong urge to roll her eyes. The approach of loud music and the honking of a horn saved her from the temptation._

"_Hey baby!" Chris sat atop his motorcycle, his hair peaking out in smooth waves from under his helmet. "Come on!" Lorelai smiled and without another glance at Beth, ran and hopped onto the back of his motorcycle. She placed her hands around his waist and they sped off._

"_Hey sexy girl," Chris murmured as they turned the corner into a more secluded street._

"_Aren't you in a good mood today!" Lorelai observed._

"_I had a lucky night last night," Chris hinted. Lorelai laughed, loving the feeling of the wind blowing through her long hair. Chris slowed down the motorcycle. They were in front of his house now._

"_Your folks home?" Chris shook his head, grinning in excitement. Lorelai started up the steps to the sprawling mansion, but Chris grabbed her by the arm. _

"_Where are you going?" he asked her. Lorelai raised her eyes._

"_Apparently not inside." Chris pulled her behind his house, into the sprawling garden. Right in the center a blanket was set up. Chris had set a small basket on top of it. _

"_Here we are," Chris announced with a sweep of his hand. He sat down on the blanket and pulled Lorelai down with him._

"_A picnic?" Lorelai asked, her eyes wide. "Wow Chris, you really outdid yourself this time."_

"_Well, last night was special, and I wanted to make it last a little longer," he murmured, tucking a strand of stray hair behind her ear. He pulled her close to him, and they kissed passionately. Lorelai ran her fingers through his hair, and he caressed her shoulders. His hands traveled down her back and under her shirt. He leaned her back onto the blanket, taking in her fresh scent. She let him move his mouth from her lips to her neck, and then sighed as they found her lips again. Finally he sat up, and she followed, straightening her blouse. She caught him looking at her with a silly grin on his face, and she smiled back._

"_So what's in the basket?" Lorelai asked. "Turkey sandwiches?" Chris reached for it and pulled it towards them._

"_Not exactly", he asked, pulling out a bottle of champagne. _

"_Now we're talking," Lorelai giggled. Chris pulled out two tall glasses and filled them up. He handed on glass to Lorelai._

"_To the prettiest girl there is," he toasted. They clinked their glasses together. Lorelai tilted her head back and savored the bubbly champagne. All of a sudden a ringing noise reached her ears. She looked around for the source of the sound. It was coming from her school-bag. She glanced over at Chris, but he didn't seem to hear it. Lorelai reached in, digging around the contents. She grasped a small, cool object that was vibrating and pulled it out. It was a cell phone. _A cell phone? _ Lorelai stared at it as all of her senses onverged in a big ball of confusion. She glanced at the caller ID. _

_Rory._

_All of a sudden she felt Chris grab her arm. His eyes were wide, desperate. _

"_Let's get married," he pleaded. "It will work out, you'll see. We can get through this. I'll get a job, and you can have the baby." He looked nauseous. Lorelai tried to pull away but Chris was holding her tight. "Let's get married," he repeated in desperation.  
"What?" Lorelai pulled harder, but Christopher's grip was like iron. The ringing kept getting louder and louder. Lorelai felt herself breaking into a cold sweat. _

"_Let's get married…"_

Lorelai bolted up in her bad, her covers twisted in a mess around her. The music was still playing. Her alarm radio. She smacked the top of it and it silenced. All that was left in the quiet was the sound of her heavy breathing. She glanced around the room, trying to callm herself down. The sun was pushing through the cracks in her shades. Lorelai felt beads of seat gathered on the back of her neck. She glanced at her clock. 7:00. Her shift started in half an hour. Slowly she climbed out og bed into her slippers and made her way to the bathtub. She turned on the shower savoring the feel of the cool water cascading onto her hands. A nice long shower was exactly what she needed.

Later, Lorelai had all but pushed the dream from her mind. Se was dusting behind the front desk as Michelle shouted angrily into the phone.

"I swear," he muttered as he slammed the receiver ack into it's cradle, "These people are getting more arrogant by ze day. I mean can you believe… O, hello Rory."

"Rory?" Lorelai turned around. Sure enough, there stood her daughter. "Hey," Lorelai said, coming out from behind the counter. "What brings you here?"

Rory stared at the duster in her hand, then focused her attention back on her mother. "Um, is now a bad time?"

"No, not at all," Lorelai assured her. "I'm taking my lunch break," she announced to Michelle.

"Of course you are," Michelle drawled in his thick accent. Lorelai rolled her eyes.

"Let's go," she told Rory, leading her into the inn's kitchen. She untied her apron and hung it on the wall.

"O hey!" Sookie said when she saw the two of them. "How would you guys like a some lunch?"

"That would be great," Lorelai smiled. Sookie set about hustling around the kitchen, throwing things in pans and making a big ruckus.

"So how are things going?" Lorelai asked, turning to her daughter. Rory shrugged.

"Pretty good." Lorelai shifted uncomfortably in the awkward silence.

"That's good," she agreed. "How are things with Dean?" This seemed to finally get the ball rolling.

"We broke up," Rory told her. Lorelai's eyes widened in surprise.

"Really? Why? You guys seemed pretty happy together."

"I know. But I'm with this guy Jess now." Sookie came by with steaming plates of hot food, which she set in front of them.

"Bon Appetite!" she wished them.

"So tell me about this Jess," Lorelai demanded.

Rory considered for a moment, chewing on her piece of grilled cheese.

"I don't know, he's… different. He's quiet, a bit of a loner, but he's so smart. We love all the same books and music, and we always have something to talk about. And he's always ready to do whatever he wants. Dean was always so… safe I guess."

Lorelai nodded.

"I know what you mean, kiddo."

Rory raised her eyebrows.

"Kiddo?"

Lorelai wrinkled her nose.

"Yeah I was trying to sound old there for a second but… ew."She shuddered. Rory laughed. "So how did your first breakup go?"

"Horrible!" Rory complained. "I mean, I guess they're not supposed to be great, but I was the one doing all the hurting. Dean just looked so… betrayed." She set her food down and put her head in her hands. "I felt like such a horrible person." Lorelai put a hand on top of her daughters.

"Hey, I might not know you that well, but if there's anything I do know about you, it's that you're not a horrible person. " Rory looked unconvinced. "Haven't you ever had your heartbroken before?" Lorelai asked her. Rory shook her head.

"Well, you will one day, and maybe it will feel a lot like what Dean feels right now. But you learn to forgive, and move on, and you find somebody else."

"I hope so," Rory sighed. "I mean, not the whole getting my heart broken part, but I hope Dean will forgive me and meet someone else. He deserves someone special."

"Trust me, he'll bounce back fast. Boys always do."

Sookie knocked on the door of Lorelai's small house.

"Come in!" she heard Lorelai yell from within.

"Hi honey," she eased herself through the door, balancing the foil pan she was holding. "I just came by to see if maybe you wanted some leftovers from supper tonight. I swear, sometimes I just cook way too much food. Michelle want to bite my head off- Are you going out tonight?" she asked in surprise.

Lorelai was dressed in a casual black dress with a small sweater thrown on top. Her hair was brushed and lay neatly over her shoulders, and she was wearing a lot of makeup.

"Is it weird if I'm going out with the father of the daughter I can't remember?"

"Oh my god!" Sookie exclaimed, holding her hands over her mouth in surprise. "You're going out with _Christopher?!" _

Lorelai nodded.

"He just called up tonight and asked me to have dinner with him. And he said to dress nice. Sookie, what does this mean?"

"It means that you have a date!"

"With an adult!" Lorelai groaned, slowly freaking out. Sookie was confused.

"Yeah, but you _are_ an adult honey," she pointed out.

"Well yeah, but _I_ don't know that." Sookie, still confused, chose to ignore that.

"It's going to be great," she assured her friend. Lorelai nodded, taking a deep breath.

All of a sudden there was a knock at the door.

"Oh my god!" Lorelai whispered. "He's here!"

"Well then you better open up the door!" Sookie pointed out.

"Right. Door," Lorelai instructed herself. She moved toward the said object and paused. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before swinging it open.

"Hi," she greeted softly.

"Hey," Sookie heard Chris say from the other side of the door. The door opened wider and Sookie got a full view of Rory's father.

"You look amazing," he was telling a blushing Lorelai.

"You don't look too bad yourself," she returned. He gently took her arm and led her out the door.

"So where are we going?"

"I thought we'd go out to a nice, quiet restaurant. I know a few good places."

"I hope so. I am trusting you tonight."

"I won't let you down," Chris promised. "You can always trust me." Lorelai smiled and settled back into the leather seat of Chris's car.

Twenty minutes later Chris held out the chair for Lorelai as a waiter showed them to their table.

"Wow such a gentleman," Lorelai teased. Chris grinned and took his seat.

"So how are things going with Rory?" Lorelai inquired.

"Fine. I told you Lor, she's a good kid. No problems. Let's just focus on us tonight, okay?"

"Well, you are paying for dinner, so I guess your rules," Lorelai conceded.

The evening passed quickly for the both of them. Soon enough Chris was paying the check and they were walking out of the resturant holding hands.

"This was really great Chris," Lorelai said. "Thank you."

"It was fun," Chris agreed. "Well, time to get back to reality," he groaned.

He drove through the black night into the sleepy streets of Stars Hollow. They passed all the deserted stores with the eerie blackness. Chris stopped as a couple crossed the street before them. The couple laughed as they crossed, and the boy turned his head and softly kissed the girl. The girls white teeth shone through the darkness as she smiled.

"Oh, that's nice," Lorelai sighed warmly.

"Hang on," Chris peered through the windshield. "Is that Rory? Who is that? Why isn't she with Dean?"

"Um, she broke with Dean," Lorelai explained. "Wait _you didn't know?"_ Chris gripped the steering wheel, his knuckles turning white.

"No, I didn't," he admitted.

"Wow," Lorelai tried to grasp this. "Suddenly I feel so much less comfortable with you taking care of my daughter. She's going out with Jess," she informed her father.

"Luke's nephew?" Chris exclaimed.

"Hold on, Jess is Luke _nephew? _ Okay, she left that part out when she told me."

"Apparently she left out a lot of things." Chris muttered. Lorelai lad a hand on his chest.

"Chris, relax. She's sixteen okay? She's allowed to have her secrets."

"Rory doesn't have secrets," Chris insisted.

'Apparently not," Lorelai pointed out. Chris considered, sighed, and they drove on. He pulled up in front of the house. The empty, dark rooms beckoned.

"I thought we'd stop here for some coffee before I drove you home." The two of them got out of the car and glided up to the frotn door. Christopher tucked a piece of hair behind Lorelai's ear.

"You really do look beautiful tonight," he told her. Lorelai looked up at him. Chris stooped down and kissed her softly on the lips. They stood like that for a moment, kissing passionately and caressing each other. Luke wriggled his arm free and fumbled for his key. He hastily stuck it into the lock, and the door swung open. He pulled Lorelai in after him, moving his lips down to her neck and shoulders.

"Chris," Lorelai gasped. "Rory…"

"…Is with Jess. And we're all alone." Lorelai didn't need much convincing. She let her resistance go, and Chris swung the door shut behind him.

* * *

bum bum bum....

:-) tell me what you guys think. (AKA Review) and i promise to work really hard not to make you wait anymore!


	16. Late Night Talks

All right, I put this chapter up pretty fast to make up for making everybody wait so long. I want to thank all my reviewers, and announce that i know there are a lot of you who have been enjoying my story with out reviewing... tsk tsk! Also, thanks to all those who pointed out that i wrote Luke's name at the end of the chapter. Yes, it was a mistake, and no, she did not all of a sudden become transported to an alternate universe. All those who hate the Chris/ Lorelai pairing don't worry, so do I, so just hang in there a little bit longer... things are about to get messy...

Here's a brief summery about everything that's happened so far, cause I know it's kind of hard to follow from the very beginning.

**Prologue:** Rory an Lorelai get into an accident and Lorleai is comatose. Rory goes to Live with Luke.

**1: Two Years Later:** two years later, Lorelai is still comatose, and Rory and Luke have fallen into a comfortable routine. Rory is dating Dean. Jess comes to live with Luke. He is curious about Rory, but she doesn't want to talk about why she lives at Luke's.

**2:MotherDaughter**: Rory and Jess get used to living together. Jess discovers an album of Rory and her mom, and Rory finds him and angrily kicks him out of her room. she goes to visit her mother, where she speaks to the still figure.

**3: Puzzle Piece**: Jess follows Rory to one of her hospital visits and finds out the truth.

**4: Kiss and Makeup:** Rory finds him and is furious. She admits that she didn't want him to feel sorry for her, and she forgives him. a few weeks later, Rory asks jess to drive her to the hospital, where she takes him into to "meet" Lorelai. She says really nice things about him. he goes outside for air, and they kiss.

**5: Endings Lead to beginnings:** As soon as the kiss is over, Rory freaks out and demands Jess take her home. She feels guilty about lying to Dean andshe tells him about the kiss. Dean confronts jess at school and the get into a fistfight. When Luke is picking up Jess from the principle's office they get a call to come to the hospital because Lorelai is dying. Luke picks Roryup from school and they head over. However, instead of dying, Lorelai wakes up with amnesia.

**6: Reuniting:** Lorelai can't remember anything since she was sixteen, so Luke calls Christopher, who comes and tells Lorelai a little bit about her life. Rory and Dean have a big fight.

**7: The Photo Album:** Rory brings Lorelai the album with pictures of them growing up, and she tells Lorelai that she's been living with Luke. Shocked, Lorelai confronts Chris about why Rory doesn't live with him. Chris admits that he hasn't been stable enough to be a good father, but that he is ready to be here for Lorelai and Rory now. He asks Rory if she wants to move back home with him and her mom, and she readily agrees.

**8:Homecoming:** Jess gets upset when he learns that Rory is moving out and picks a fight with her. She and her dad prepare the house for Lorelai's homecoming, and they have a nice dinner. Rory goes out to pick up a cake, and on the way home she trips and ruins the cake outside of Dean's house and Dean comes outside. Everything that has been happening has built up onside Rory and she ends up breaking down and sobbing. Dean takes her inside where they talk for a long time. As she is leaving, they start kissing, and at the end she realizes that Jess has been watching from across the street the whole time. She goes back home. After dinner, Lorelai announces she is ready for bed, but she finds her room without any of them showing her, indicating that somewhere she still remembers.

**9: Remeetings:** Lorelai meets Luke. Jess asks Rory about her night with Dean, to which Rory happily admits that they are back together. When she gets back from school, Dean asks if he could go home and meet her mom. Rory reluctantly agrees. When they get to her house, Dean offers to pick up the food. Rory goes into her room to do some homework while she waits, and Jess comes to her window. He complains that since Rory has moved out, they don't spend anytime together, and he asks her to sneak out with him, but she replies that she can't.

**10: Living, Really Living: ** After Dinner, Lorelai comments to Chris that she doesn't think Rory likes Dean as much as Dean does her. This leads to them reminiscing about their own relationship in high school and Chris tries to kiss Lorelai. Lorelai stops him and explains that she still feels 16, while he's an adult. Chris replies that he will wait for her to grow up. The next day Jess chides Rory because she didn't sneak out with him and claims that she doesn't know what real living is. In school Rory asks Tristan what he thinks real living is, and he replies that it's living with no regrets. Sookie comes over and shows Lorelai around the town, where she get's reacquainted with Luke. That night Lorelai announces that she is moving into her old house behind the inn, in order to figure out some things.

**11: Leaving, Learning, Living: ** Lorelai moves out, and explains to Rory that she wants them to build their relationship so they can return to the special bond they had before the accident. Rory finds Dean is unsympathetic to the pain this move is causing her and she gets angry. She suprises Jess in his apartment and says that she wants to get away from it all. They take a train into New York and Jess shows Rory the city for the first time. He takes her to Central Park and they sit by the water. Rory kisses Jess, who hesitates, remembering the last time, but Rory assures him that this is what she wants, and that Dean no longer knows how to make her happy.

**12: New Beginnings:** Luke hears Rory lie to Christopher the next morning about where she was and tells Rory so. Jess tries to kiss Rory in the diner, but she stops him, because she hasn't officially broken up with Dean yet and her father is right there. Lorelai confides to Sookie that she's afraid she's never to find what she's looking for. Sookie promises her that she will. Chris comes by to see how Lorelai is doing and they start talking about Rory. Chris mentions that she was tutoring her friend last night, and Lorelai laughs and says that's the oldest excuse in the book and that Rory's been lying to him. Chris brushes this off, claiming that Rory is different than other kids. As he's leaving he tells Lorelai that he thinks she's doing great and he kisses her.

**13: Heart Breaker: ** Rory breaks up with Dean, which he does not take well. Afterwards, Jess meets up with Rory. She protests at his PDA, explaining that she doesn't want to shove it in Dean's face. Jess isn't happy about this and they part in ill spirits. Luke comes to the Inn to repair a few things and him and Lorelai end up in the same room. Lorelai asks him about their relationship and why he would do something so huge like taking in her daughter, but Luke is very vague. Lorelai wonders out loud how she got so lucky to have a kid like Rory, but Luke disagrees and says that Rory is the one that got lucky, and she's the kid she is because of the way Lorelai raised her. Jess comes to see Rory when her dad isn't home and they're in her room. He apologizes and tell her that part of what makes her so great is her sensitivity towards other people. They start kissing when Chris comes home unexpectedly early. Rory pretends that Jess came over to borrow a CD. Chris realizes that he needs to set some house rules and asks Rory if Lorelai would have let her have a boy in her room, to which Rory honestly replies no.

**14: Dates and Fates: **Lorelai has a dream about when she was sixteen which quickly turns into the nightmare about the present. Rory comes and visits her at the Inn and they talk over lunch. Rory confides that she is going out with Jess now, and Lorelai gives her some boy advice. Later, Lorelai has a date with Chris and is really nervous about it. They go out and have a really nice time but on the way back they see Rory and Jess walking and kissing. Lorelau becomes unsettled when she finds out that Chris didn't know about their relationship, but then insists that all teenagers keep secrets. Chris pulls up to the house and the two of them start kissing intensly, and Chris observes that Rory isn't home and closes the door.

And that is where we are now. Any questions? Okay then, read on. I personally really like this chapter… tell me what you think.

O right… **Disclaimer:** just in case anybody thought I owned Gilmore Girls… I don't… only in my dreams. I do own the story plot though, so please don't steal that…

**15: Late Night Talks:**

Jess and Rory sat on the stairs in front of her house saying goodbye. The night was still as they held onto each other.

"Mmmm," Rory murmured. "I'm so happy right now." Jess smiled, playing with her hair.

"I bet I'm even happier." He kissed the top of her head. "You know, a few more dates like this one and we could win an award."

"For what, best dates or something? As much fun as we have, and I do have a _lot_ of fun, I'm sure there are people who can knock us right out of first place."

"Like who?'

"I don't know, like people who go skydiving and bungee jumping. Or climb Mount Everest," Rory speculated, her eyes wide with imagination.

"O come on that's just a list of who can get the sweatiest on a date. Seriously, we might be simple," Jess admitted, "But if there was some sort of meter to measure who's having the best time, we would have that award in the bag."

"Nobody could beat us, not even the bungee jumpers?"

"Not even bungee jumpers who jumped from Everest," Jess promised.

"Okay, I really have to go inside now," Rory said.

"Why don't you just move back to Luke's?" Jess pressed. "That way we never have to say goodnight."

"I think we might get sick of each other if we never said goodnight," Rory told him. "Besides," she added, "distance makes the heart grow fonder."

She gave Jess one last lingering kiss, and he savored the texture of her soft lips. Then with a smile that melted his heart, she disappeared inside.

The house appeared empty to Rory as she made her way through the den and the kitchen, so she assumed her father had gone to bed early. Thinking of the summer reading that she wanted to get through, Rory found her way into her room and pulled the long novel out from under her bed. She settled herself comfortably against her soft pillows, and allowed herself to be lost in another world.

Five minutes later, Rory heard the stairs creaking, and footsteps outside her room. So her father was up after all. She swung her feet of onto the floor and threw her book onto her bed.

"Hey dad," she said, throwing open her door. "How was your night? I had so-" She stopped short at the sight that met her eyes. Her mother and father stood together in the kitchen, looking like a couple of kids who'd been caught stealing candy. Rory took in the sight of the two of them, trying to process what she was seeing. Her mother's shirt was wrinkled, and her father's shirt was open at the top. She took in the sight of Lorelai's mused hair, and Chris untucked shirt.

"Your mom and I had a nice dinner tonight," Chris told his daughter.

"Dinner?" Rory repeated.

"Yeah, you know, just to see how everything is doing and how she's feeling." He fidgeted uncomfortably.

"So…. Where did you eat? Here?" Rory gestured to the kitchen around her.

"No we went to Daunte's. They have great apple pie dessert."

"And then you came back here…?" Rory prompted.

"For coffee," her dad filled in.

"Coffee," Rory repeated. She glanced at her mother again, who was staring at the floor as if trying to cut a whole through it with her eyes. Chris followed his daughter's gaze and turned to her.

"I guess I'll drive you home now," he offered. Lorelai hesitated.

"No it's okay, I think I'm going to go over to Sookie."

"You sure?"

Lorelai nodded. She turned and disappeared quickly out of sight. Rory and her dad were left behind in the silence. Chris swung his hand back and forth uncomfortably.

"So… how was your night?" he asked, desperate to break the silence. Rory raised her eyebrow.

"Apparently not as fun as yours," she attacked.

"Rory…"

"No!" Rory cut him off angrily. "You slept with Mom? Seriously Dad?"

"Rory I…"

"Don't you see how you're going to ruin everything?"

"Hey!" Chris cut her off. "I am your father. I'm able to make my own decisions too."

"O yeah…clearly," Rory muttered.

"Watch it!" Chris shouted. "Young lady, you might not like what I did, but I am still your father!"

"You're going to pull the father card on me now?" Rory mocked.

"Yeah I am," Chris said, not backing down. He felt himself heating up. "Because that's what I am. Speaking of which, why don't you try treating me like your father? Like how about you don't lie to me anymore? I saw you tonight, and it wasn't Dean you were kissing! How about a little honesty and respect?"

"I'll start treating you like my father when you start acting like one!" Rory yelled. She ran into her room and slammed the door behind her. Chris stared at the silent door and sighed. He walked over and knocked softly.

"Rory?" There was no answer. "Rory come on, I'm sorry. Open up please?"

But no matter how he begged, the door stayed closed and his daughter stayed silent.

A loud knocking awakened Sookie from her light slumber. Rubbing her eyes, she donned her robe and slippers, and trudged sleepily to the door as the insistent knocking continued.

"Lorelai?" Sookie yawned as she opened the door.

"Hey," Lorelai whispered. "I'm really sorry I woke you."

"No sweetheart, it's ok. Is everything all right? Oh no, did something happen with Christopher?" Lorelai nodded. "Come on in," Sookie invited, opening the door wide.

Lorelai followed Sookie into her small apartment and into her kitchen, where she took a seat at the table. Sookie threw a few things into a cup and retuned to the table with two steaming cups of apple cider. "So what happened sweetie?" she asked.

"We slept together." Lorelai blurted out. Sookie paused with the hot mug inches from her lips, and set it back onto the table.

"You slept with Christopher?" she repeated, all hints of sleep gone from her eyes. Lorelai nodded.  
"Well, honey, don't you think it's a little too fast?" Lorelai nodded again.

"It's way too fast! I'm not ready for that! I still have so much I need to figure out. I don't know what I want yet. I've ruined everything!" She massaged her temples with her fingers.

"I'm sure it's not that bad," Sookie soothed her friend.

"There's more," Lorelai warned.

"More?" Sookie prompted wearily.

"Rory found out."

Sookie whistled. She closed her eyes. "Rory found out?" she repeated.

"Yeah. She came home from her date earlier than we thought she would and when we came downstairs she saw us."

"What did she do?"

"Well, nothing while I was there," Lorelai related. "But she just looked really freaked out. Oh she's so mad, I just know it."

"It'll be okay," Sookie repeated. "I'm sure Chris can handle her."

Lorelai looked up doubtfully. "Can he?"

Rory paced around her room, her anger preventing her from staying stationary. Chris had stopped trying to break down her door a few minutes ago, and had trudged up the stairs, defeated. _ Serves him right. _ She paced back and forth. Finally, unable to take the confines of her four walls, she lifted up her window and snuck out. She didn't have any doubts about where she was going, so a few minutes later she was standing outside the dark diner, throwing pebbles at what she knew was Jess's room. But it wasn't Jess who opened the window.

"Rory?" Luke stuck his head out the window, blinking sleepily.

"Oh, I'm sorry Luke," Rory apologized, guiltily remembering how he liked to get to sleep early.

"It's ok," he called down, "Jess didn't come back yet. Is everything ok?"

"Yeah," Rory assured him. "I just forgot to tell him something," she lied.

"Well, come on up, and you can wait for him."

"O that's ok. Go back to sleep!"

Luke shrugged. "I'm already up," he pointed out. "I'll be right down." A minute later the lights downstairs went on as Luke crossed the diner with a set of keys.

"Hey," he greeted, holding the door open for Rory.

"Hey Luke. I'm really sorry about this," she apologized again. Again, Luke shrugged.

"Please Rory, I'm perfectly able to get along without a little bit of sleep. Come on up, and I'll make you some tea," he offered kindly. Too tired to argue anymore, Rory obliged and followed him upstairs. She took a seat at the small table in the kitchen area while Luke put a teakettle of the stove. Then he turned and joined her at the table.

"Are you sure you're okay?" he asked her, scrutinizing her face.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Rory insisted, not meeting his eyes. Luke sighed.

"Rory, you never lied to me while you lived here. Don't start now." Rory blushed.

"I'm just having trouble with my parents that's all." Luke gently laid a rough hand on her shoulder.

"Is there anything I can do? Do you need to talk about it?"

Rory smiled at his sweet protectiveness but shook her head. "No it'll be fine," she said, more to herself than to Luke. Just then the teakettle interrupted them with a shrill whistle. Luke got up and turned off the stove, pulling out a mug and the sugar bowl. As he set about pouring the tea, the door opened and Jess sauntered in. He stopped short when he saw Rory.

"What's going on?" he asked, glancing at Luke suspiciously.

"I just forgot to tell you something before," Rory jumped in, trying to communicate with her eyes what she wasn't saying out loud. Luke set the cup of tea down on the table. The two of them stared at him silently. He sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Ok, here's the deal," he instructed. "I'm going to bed now. If you guys go into Jess's room the door is to remain open. And I'm a very light sleeper," he warned. Now it was Jess's turn to roll his eyes.

"How about if Rory and I stood on opposite ends of the apartment?" he bit sarcastically. "Would that make you feel better?"

"Don't tempt me," Luke warned, trudging into his bed.

"Good night Luke," Rory called. 'Thanks." She turned to Jess.

"What's up?" Jess asked. "If you needed to tell me something, you do know how to use a phone right?"

"Where were you just now?"

"Well, _Mom_, I was reading on the docks. There's a hell of a lot more air there then in this tiny apartment." He pulled a paperback from his back pocket in order to prove his point. "The real question is what are _you_ doing out so late?"

"I just couldn't stay there anymore."

"Christopher?" Jess asked, leading Rory into his room, where the two of them sat down on the bed.

"And Lorelai. My parents slept together!"

"See, most people wouldn't complain about their parents having sex," Jess pointed out with a twinkle in his eye.

"Jess!" Rory insisted.

"Okay," Jess relented, growing serious. "When did this happen?"

"Tonight, when we were out. Can you believe that, I just come home and the two of them come downstairs like nothing's happened? How could Lorelai do this? She knows she's not ready for that, and she's going to ruin everything!"

Jess massaged Rory's back as she vented her anger. "And I can't believe my dad!" she continued. "I feel like he took advantage of her. He knows how confused she is! He should have at least known better if she didn't!"

"People are just stupid Rory," he tried to explain to her. "At least not _everything _is falling apart."

"What do you mean?" Rory turned to him curiously.

"There's still you and me."

Across the apartment, Luke lay on his back, awake in his bed. He failed to notice that it had suddenly grown silent. He was too busy thinking about what he had just heard. _Lorelai and Christopher. _ He rolled over onto his stomach, trying to cushion his broken heart.

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Okay praise and criticism both accepted... Review!!!


	17. Rude Awakenings

Hey guys sorry for the long wait and short chapter but summer is crazy. Unfortunately I won't be able to update for the next five weeks because I will be touring Europe and Asia and will not have access to a computer. But I promise to think of awesome ideas for the story for when I get back! So enjoy! And REVIEW!

Rory was sleeping. She felt the sun on her face as she stretched out on the bed, eyes still closed. She felt groggy, and not ready to wake up. Slowly the events of last night came back to her. Her romantic evening with Jess, finding her mother and father together, sneaking out, and coming to Luke's. She groaned inwardly. Last night had _not _been fun. Slowly, Rory opened her eyes. She was lying on her side on top of the blanket, and right next to her, eyes open, was Jess.

"Good Morning," he said softly as there eyes met. Confused, Rory looked around. she was in Jess's room in Luke's apartment. She sat up with a start.

"Oh my god!" she exclaimed. Her clothes that she had been wearing from the night before were all wrinkled from having been slept in. "We… we fell asleep talking," she recalled, straining to remember. "I stayed out all night! Christopher is going to kill me!"

"Hey, calm down," Jess soothed her, sitting up next to her. Rory noticed the way his hair was all mussed. She took a deep breath.

"I can't," she insisted stubbornly. "He's probably freaking out."

"Serves him right," Jess proclaimed. Rory couldn't help but laugh at that.

"I should get home," she said, standing up.

"What's the rush?" Jess asked. Rory gave him a look. She hurried out of the room and into the kitchen area. Luke was at the stove. He turned around when she came out.

"Good morning," he greeted her, leaning against the counter.

"Luke," she returned awkwardly. She glanced into the room, then back at Luke. "I swear, nothing happened… we just fell asleep…" Luke held out his hand to stop her.

"I know," he assured her. "The door was open the whole night. So would you like some pancakes?" he turned back to the stove. "I made them with chocolate chips and blueberry."

"Um, I was actually about to go home."

"Come on," Jess pressed, emerging from the bedroom. "At least stay for breakfast." Rory, not looking forward to what awaited her at home, didn't need much convincing. The three of them sat down at the table as Luke set three steaming plates in front of them. Jess and Luke dug into theirs, but Rory stared queasily at her own. Luke reached his hand across the table to hers.

"Rory, are you sure you're okay?" he asked softly. Rory cast him a sad smile.

"I'll be fine," she assured him. "I hope," she added as an afterthought.

Lorelai was sleeping. She twisted away from the sun as the rays hit her face. She felt something tap her lightly on her shoulder, but struggled to stay in that sweet abyss of ignorance. The tapping continued. Lorelai groaned, twisting away, but again the sun's rays invaded her sleep.

"Lorelai?" a voice called her. Lorelai slowly opened her eyes. And took in her bearings. She lying on Sookie's couch in her apartment, the sheets tangled all around her. slowly she sat up, blinking as she tried to remember why she was there. Sookie was sitting next to her, rubbing her back. "Hey sweetheart, how are you doing?" Lorelai shrugged. Sookie gave her a quick, tight hug. "Everything will be all right, you'll see," Sookie assured her. Lorelai looked up at her, tears in eyes. "Will it?" she challenged. "I messed everything up last night. Everything was going so well, and then I went and messed up everything, in the typical style of Lorelai Gilmore!"

"Hey," Sookie stopped her. "Typical Lorelai Gilmore style is not messing everything up! It's making the best out of messed up situations okay? Just look at your life. Yeah, getting pregnant at sixteen was a mistake, but look what you made out of it! You could practically be an advertisement for teen pregnancy because of the life you created! And you always used to deal with who-knows-what going on at the inn when you were the manager, and everything always turned out great. And yeah, sleeping with Christopher last not wasn't the ideal choice to make, but if I know my friend at all, she's not going to let it get her way."

Lorelai bit her lip, hoping that her heart would listen to Sookie's words instead of the fear and regret pulsing in her veins.

Chris was sleeping. He pulled the covers over his head to block the sun as the creak of a door aroused him from his sleep. He tried to roll over, but found he had no room. Opening his eyes, he realized he was asleep on the couch in the living room. That was when he remembered why he was there. The phone lay beside him. he had fallen asleep staring at it, waiting anxiously for either one of the two women in his life to call. Neither had. He heard the door close quietly and light footsteps make there way towards the kitchen.

"Rory?" he called rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Is that you?" The footsteps stopped, then continued, this time towards him. Chris stood up as his daughter meekly crept into the room. She was wearing the same clothes as the night before, and her hair was unbrushed. "You stayed out all night," he stated slowly, dragging out each word. Rory nodded. "I don't even know what to say!' he steamed, curling his hands into fists. "I was worried sick all night, because I had no idea where my daughter was!"

"Well, I'm here now," Rory mumbled, knowing that probably wouldn't help matters much.

"Where were you last night?" Chris confronted her. Rory looked at the floor as she answered.

"Luke's."

"With Jess?" Chris asked, his face slowly turning crimson. "You spent the night with your boyfriend."

"Oh my god, it wasn't like that!" Rory felt herself growing angry. "I was upset, and I went over there and I fell asleep."

"_You were upset_?" Chris repeated. "_You were upset?_" When you're upset you slam the door, maybe kick a hole in the wall, throw some things around. You don't sneak out to your boyfriends house and spend the night!"

"I'm sorry, but I told you nothing happened! Luke was there the whole time!"

"O well, now I feel a lot better about where you were the last two years and who was raising you!" he was yelling now, and they were both losing control.

"And whose fault is that?" Rory shot back, her words slicing through like a knife. "Maybe if you had stepped up to the job I wouldn't have had such an 'unfortunate' upringing."

Chris fell silent, muted by his daughter's acid words. He massaged his temples.

"You're grounded," he said finally, eyes closed.

"Grounded?" Rory had never heard the word before in her life. Chris nodded. "Are you kidding?" she asked incredulously. Chris shook his head.

"Things around here need to change," he said. He was calm now, keeping himself in control. "And they're going to change now."

"So you sleep with mom and I get grounded?" Rory protested.

"The two things have nothing to do with each other," her dad insisted.

"Uhuh, sure," Rory insisted. "How long are you going to ground me for?"

"Indefinetly."

"I don't believe this!" yelled Rory. "You don't get to just prance in here and ground me! I've never bee grounded in my life!"

"There's a first time for everything," Chris answered calmly. "You sneak out, you get grounded."

Rory shot Chris a death stare and ran into her room, slamming the door behind her. Chris waited expectantly. He heard the windows rattle, and then Rory's frustrated scream. She whisked the door open, her face red from excursion. "You put _locks_ on my window?" she asked furiously.

"Well, I needed someway to keep busy last night when I was waiting for you to come home."

"I'm not some crazy nut-job that needs to be contained!" she protested angrily. "I'm your _daughter_!"

"Yes, and as my daughter, you have certain responsibilities. Like coming home at night for instance. And judging by the fact that you just tried to sneak out again, the locks were pretty necessary."

"The locks wouldn't be necessary if you weren't driving me out of this house in the first place," Rory told him, slamming the door, this time for good.


	18. When Things Fall Apart

Hey guys! I know it's been awhile. It turns out that i didn't have aas much time in Europe to write as i thought i would. I hope you guys are still interested in the story. When we left off, Chris had slept with Lorelai and Rory was grounded for sneaking out and spending the night with Jess. and so it goes on...

* * *

Luke looked up instinctively as the door to his diner opened, but he paused when he saw who was entering. Lorelai was being hustled in by a protective Sookie and they took their seats by the counter. A fist curled itself around Luke's heart, and he squeezed the rag he was using to wipe down the surface.

"Morning Luke," Sookie greeted brightly. "We'll get two coffees, and I will have one of your blueberry muffins. Lorelai honey, do you want something?" Lorelai shook her head. She looked smaller somehow, like she had given up and was just slipping away.

"No thanks," she almost whispered. Sookie frowned.

"You need to eat," she prompted.

"Allright," Lorelai gave in, too weak to put up a fight. "I'll have pancakes, I guess," she said to Luke.

"Don't sound so excited about it," he mumbled sarcastically.

"Excuse me?" Lorelai looked up at him, and made him stop in his tracks. Her blue eyes looked so scared and hopeless, as if the world was one big black hole waiting to swallow her up. Her hair was unbrushed and fell in limp wisps around her shoulders. She sat slouched, as if trying to take up a little space as possible in her foreign world. And yet she was still beautiful. But then the image of her and Christopher together popped back into Luke' head and his anger reared once more.

"You make it sound like by eating my food you're doing me a huge favor. I've got customers and I've tasted my food, and if you don't want to eat it, that's fine with me!"

Lorelai was shocked by his outburst.

"Luke I didn't say that! I'm just not very hungry right now…"  
"If you're not hungry, you shouldn't be in a diner now should you?" He slammed the food down in front of them and left to the back of his store, where he sat for a a very long time staring at the wall.

Meanwhile in the front of the store, Lorelai and Sookie were trying to make sense out of what had just occurred.

"Did I do something to offend him?" Lorelai asked, wringing her hands together.

"I don't know," Sookie commiserated, her eyebrows furrowed. "I mean, there's no way he knows about you and Christopher is there? Because that would definitely set him off."

"Somehow I doubt Christopher would go up to Luke and tell him that we did it," Lorelai said.

"Then I don't know, but something is definitely bothering that man!" Sookie pondered. Just then Christopher entered the store. His eyes met Lorelai's, and he made his way towards her.

"Hey," he greeted.

"Hi," Lorelai returned, looking down into her lap.

"Is everything okay?" Chris asked worridley, confused by her distance.

"Um, yeah," Lorelai said looking up. She glanced around. "Where's Rory?"

"Well, I grounded her," Chris confessed.

"_You what?"_ Lorelai asked, spitting out her coffee. "Why would you do that?" Chris took a step back.

"She snuck out of the house last night. What was I supposed to do?"

"Not ground her! I've never grounded her!"

Chris, about to answer, paused.

"Wait, how could you possibly remember that you never had to ground her?" this stopped Lorelai in her war path.

"I don't know," she said slowly, running her fingers over her lips. "I just somehow know that it's true." Sookie stared at her, wide eyed.

"Well if I can't ground her," Chris continued, running his hands through his hair, "What am I supposed to do? She's going out of control."

Lorelai took his hand calmly. "Try talking to her."

Luke was flipping pancakes in a pot when Jess came thundering down the stairs.

"Where are you going?" he asked his nephew.

"Out," came the vague reply. Luke rolled his eyes.

"Out where?" Jess shrugged his shoulders.

"No clue," he mumbled, grabbing a doughnut. "But try to find something to do other than pine after Lorelai while I'm gone okay?" Jess winked and ran out the door.

Rory lay on her back in her bed, staring at the ceiling and tossing a stress ball from hand to hand. There was a knock on her door.

"Come in," she mumbled. Her father entered slowly.

"Can we talk?" he asked, holding back as if he was scared Rory would lash out at him. Rory lifted herself up on her elbows.

"Now you want to talk?" she shot. Chris cringed. Slowly he moved into her room and took a seat at the end of her bed.

"Listen Rory, maybe I acted to hastily by grounding you." He heard Rory snort. "Hey!" he stopped her, growing impatient. "It wasn't exactly so responsible of you to sneak out and then spend the whole night out." Rory shrugged, avoiding his gaze. "Hey, look at me," he demanded. Rory turned her face to his. "I know I'm new at this, but I figured this much out. If this is going to work," he indicated the two of them, "then we're going to have to work through our issues okay? Nothing is going to get solved if every time you get mad at me, you run away from the problem. I know it's not the easy way out, but you're going to have to talk it out with me. And I'm going to have to try harder to listen to what you have to say. Do we have a deal?" Rory thought for a moment, then nodded.

"You want to talk," she began, "let's talk. Let's talk about you sleeping with mom!"

"I don't understand why it upsets you so much," Chris protested.

"Because, it's _Mom!_" Rory tried to explain. "Dad, you're messing everything up! Mom is just trying to get back on her feet. You're getting her all confused. The second you start something with her, you mix up her past, present and future all into one big confusing mess! And all she's trying to do is figure out the difference between all of them. You knew that. What were you thinking?"

Chris was quiet for a while. Silently he stroked his daughter's back.

"I think I just wanted to make sure that this time, I'm in her future."

Luke was heading back to his shop after paying a visit to the small tool store around the corner. All of a sudden he heard someone laugh crazily around the corner. He rounded it, and came face to face with Lorelai. She was walking unsteadily, veering off to either side of her, with a silly smile plastered on her face.

"Oh hello, Luke," she greeted loudly, giggling. "Lucas, Lue, Louie," she continued, slurring her "s's" as she pronounced each name.

"Lorelai?" Luke asked. He had never seen her like this before.

"Isn't it a lovely night?" Lorelai continued, throwing her hands out, and stumbling so much that Luke had to put a hand out to stop her. She let out a gleefull chuckle.

"Are you drunk?" he asked her.

"Well, normally I would deny it, but then I remembered that now I'm 32. So, yesssss," she told him.

"O wow, you are very drunk."

"Uhuh," Lorelai giggled, throwing her arm over Luke's shoulder.

"Okay, let's get you over to Sookie's," Luke suggested, uncomfortably pulling her along with him as he headed to his car outside the diner.

"Nuh-uh," Lorelai stopped him. "Sookie's not home. She's at a cooking seminar in New York. I miss her," she added in her drinken stupor. "She's a very nice person."

"Yes she is," Luke grunted, moving Lorelai along. He was practically carrying her, so impaired was her ability to support herself. He dragged her down the block until he stood in front of his own Diner and, having run out of options, led her inside. He led her up the stairs into his apartment.

"Is this where you live?" Lorelai drawled as she stumbled into his apartment. "It's cuuuute! It's so clean! I bet you have those little men come and clean up! What are they called?"

"Dwarfs?" Luke suggested as he led her to his bed.

"Dwarfs!" Lorelai shouted, climbing onto the bed obligingly.

"Okay, try to get some sleep," Luke commanded. Lorelai was out almost as soon as her head hit the pillow. Luke stood, watching her sleep peacefully for a few minutes. Then he grabbed a pillow and settled himself on the floor.

* * *

Please review!!!!


	19. When Confusion is Lethal

A/N: Ok, i know it's been about a month, maybe more, but everyone needs to stop glaring at me! *shields face* To make up for it, here's a really nice, long, exciting chapter that i wrote just for you guys. (Seriously, if i wasn't afraid of disappointing mY readers, i might never have gotten myself to finish.) I hope I've still got my loyal readers and reviewers! Enjoy!

Summery: Last night, Luke found Lorelai wandering completely drunk in the street. He took care of her, bring her up to his apartment and putting her to sleep in his own bed. (Awwwww)

Chapter 18:

When Confusion is Lethal

When Luke awoke the next morning, Lorelai was still sleeping, cuddled into a ball, peacefully blissful. Luke stretched, trying to get out the kinks in his back from spending the night on the floor. He stumbled to the bathroom and got dressed, then headed downstairs to prepare his diner for the early morning costumers. He put a pot of coffee on the stove and heated it up. Slowly the morning trickle began. Luke greeted all his regular customers and served them like it was any other day, but his mind was upstairs with Lorelai. Jess was still sleeping, but Luke knew he must have seen Lorelai already because he hadn't come home by the time they had gone to sleep. Luke could only imagine the type of comments that Jess would have later on.

Taylor entered the diner, glancing about as if looking for one violation or another to discuss at the town meeting that night.

"Good Morning Lucas," he greeted, taking a stool. "I'll have the decaf coffee, and a diet blueberry muffin.

"What's the point?" Luke grumbled.

"I'm sorry? The point of what?" Taylor inquired.

"Why do you even bother getting coffee if you get decaf?" They went through a similar routine everyday. Taylor began his memorized speech about health and heart and addictions, but Luke wasn't listening. Christopher had entered. He smiled unsurely when he saw Luke and headed over to the counter.

"Hey Luke," he greeted.

"Christopher," Luke returned. "What will it be?"

"I think I'll have the waffles and a cup'o'joe."

"You mean coffee?" Luke asked, rolling his eyes. "Coming up," Luke poured the coffee, noticing that he needed to refill it.

Luke's mind jumped to Lorelai upstairs, and then back to Chris, down in the diner.

"You haven't seen Lorelai recently, have you?" Chris asked Luke. Luke nearly dropped the coffee pot.

"What? N-no," he stammered. "Why would I have seen her?" Luke turned to the scrambled eggs he was preparing for another customer. As he forked them onto a plate his hand slipped and some of the eggs landed on the floor. Chris gave him a strange look.

"I don't know," Chris continued, referring to Lorelai. "I'm just worried about her. I think she's very confused. I think we all are," he added. Luke nodded.

"Um, I'll be right back. I forgot my sp-spatula upstairs." He turned and ran up to his apartment. When he opened the door he found Lorelai sitting on the bed, her clothes wrinkled from having been slept in. She blushed deeply when Luke entered.

"Wow, this is kinda humiliating," she commented. Luke waved it off.

"Don't worry about it," he assured her. "You're going through a difficult time. I understand."

"So you took care of me the whole time last night?" Lorelai asked, her voice full of gratitude.

"Well it's not like I would let you go wondering about, falling off your feet. It was the only thing I could think to do."

"Wow Luke," Lorelai commented. "First you raise my daughter, then you save me from who-knows-what, I wouldn't have anything if it weren't for you!"

Now it was Luke's turn to blush. "Really, it's not such a big deal."

"But it is," Lorelai contradicted softly. She smoothed her wrinkled shirt and stood. "I think I'll get going before I humiliate myself anymore," she said. Luke smiled.

"You might want to hold off on that. Christopher is downstairs," he told her. Lorelai's eyes widened in fear.

"He is? You're probably right. Do you mind if I…"

Luke shrugged. "Take you're time." He turned and returned to his work.

Twenty minutes later, Luke returned. Lorelai was sitting at the table. She had made herself a cup of coffee. "Hey," she greeted, her hands clasping the warm mug. She glanced down at it. "I hope you don't mind…" she apologized.

Luke was mesmerized by the way she looked so beautiful, even after the rough night she had just been through. Her unbrushed hair still reflected the rays of sunlight peaking through the window shades, and her blue eyes still retained their magic spark.

"It's fine," Luke assured her, "I know how you and Rory are about your coffee," he joked lightly. Lorelai smiled sadly, pained by the turmoil between her and her daughter. Luke read her face easily, and in four long strides he was by her side.

"Hey," he said, putting his hand on her shoulder. "It's going to be alright," he promised. "You and Rory always work these things out." He paused, not sure he was very good in the comforting business.

Lorelai gazed up at Luke. His face was completely overtaken by concern and compassion for her. His eyes kindly roamed her face, and his hand squeezed her shoulder reassuringly. It struck Lorelai that without this man her life would be a lot more broken than it already was. He had taken in her daughter and raised her in a way he knew her mother would want her to be raised, and even afterwards, he had always been there to support her in times when she needed him, like last night. And he had done it all silently, selflessly. In his handsome, rough features, Lorelai saw reflected his heart of gold. She fingered his hand that rested on her shoulder, and slowly moved her hand on his arm.

Luke stared into her face as he felt her hand climb closer and closer to her face. In her eyes he saw an expression he had never seen before; an expression he had only hoped to see. And all of a sudden, reality surpassed his dreams. She brought his face down to hers, and her face came up to his. There lips met and she stood, pressing herself firmly against him, and he took her into his arms.

Rory sat on a bench outside Chilton's sprawling grounds, her hair tied up in a ponytail, her uniform skirt smooth and crisp. Her knapsack sat next to her, heavy with at least five books she didn't need, but was bringing home anyway. A warm breeze blew past her, and the trees behind her rustled their leaves.

"Hey Mary!" she heard from behind her. She sighed as Tristan approached her.

"Hi Tristan," she muttered. She turned to him as he took a seat next to her. "What do you want?"

"Tsk, tsk," he chastised her. "I just saw you sitting here all alone, and I thought you might like some company." He leaned over and played with her ponytail. Rory shook him off her.

"Get off me Tristan!" she insisted, shifting away from him and moving her bag so that it now separated them.

"Whatsamatter?" he crooned. "It's not like you're with you're overbearing bear of a boyfriend any more. At least that's the rumor going around. So we don't have to worry about the farm boy going all cavemen on us. Our love is free to flourish," he finished dramatically. Rory felt nauseous and didn't try to conceal this from Tristan.

"You're awfully sure of yourself," she observed skeptically.

"Why shouldn't I be?" he countered. "I mean, look at me!" Rory eyes widened at the size of his ego. "So, why are you sitting out here all by yourself anyway?" he asked her.

"I'm waiting for my boyfriend," she informed him. She tried not to sound smug, and failed miserably.

"Wait, you're still with Dean?" Tristan looked devastated.

Rory shook her head. Tristan grinned.

"Wow Mary, you move fast," he admired. "Can I get in on the action?" Rory grimaced.

"You're disgusting," she told him.

"I know," he continued relentlessly, "chicks dig it."

"Well luckily I don't consider myself a chick."

"O c'mon Rory!" She was surprised to hear him use her real name. She had never been sure he actually knew it. Now Tristan was leaning over her backpack, his eyes filled with the excitement of the chase. "Stop playing so hard-to-get. We both know how this is gonna end."

To Rory's immense relief, Jess chose that moment to pull up in his old beat up car, music blasting from the stereo.

"I would love to find out how this is going to end," Rory said apologetically. "But I have to go." She jumped into the passenger seat of Jesse's car and pulled the seatbelt over her shoulder. "Hey," she greeted. Jess had a sour look on his face.

"I'm sorry, if I knew I was interrupting your little lovefest over there, I would have come later."

"What?' Rory was thoroughly confused. "Jess, what are you talking about." Jess glared out the windshield, hands tight on the steering wheel, which was ironic because he never held the steering wheel when he drove.

"It looks like I interrupted you just as you and the little rich boy were getting cozy."

Rory stared at him speechless.

"Tristan?" she finally sputtered. "You think I was getting cozy with Tristan?"

"Hey I'm not stupid, I'm just saying what I saw."

"There are few people that I don't like, but Tristan is on top of that list. I can't believe you're jealous of him! He was just flirting and I was telling him to hit the road."

"I'm not jealous," Jess muttered.

"Really?" Rory turned to him, her eyebrows raised. "Because your starting to sound a lot like Dean when I was friends with you."

"Yeah, and look how that turned out. This situation looks familiar."

Rory felt as if she'd been slapped, only worse.

"Stop the car," she demanded.

"Don't be stupid," he said begrudgingly.

"Believe me, I'm not worried about looking stupid next to you."

Jess said nothing, but he didn't stop the car either. They drove the rest of the way back to Stars Hollow in a stony silence.

Rory paced he kitchen, trying to calm her pent-up frustration. Her father had not been home when she arrived, and so she had closed herself in her room, and made a sad attempt at her mound of homework. But for the first time in her life she couldn't focus. Her fight with Jess had just made her so mad! She could not believe he would act like that, say those things. She was trying so hard just to deal with everything that had been going on, and she did not need Jess to be paranoid right now. She paused, taking a deep breath and running her fingers through her wavy hair. There was one person who she used to turn to in times like these when she needed advice. One person who used to have all the answers. Grabbing her car keys, she head out the door. She locked the door behind her, but as she turned towards he car. She saw someone coming up the lawn.

"I don't want to talk to you right now," she said, making a fast exit to her car.

"Rory, come on!" Jess protested. "Could you just calm down. You're totally overreacting!"

"_I'm_ overreacting?" Rory nearly screamed at Jess. The fury and frustration was all but pouring out of her ears. "You call me a slut because I was talking to a classmate and _I'm_ overreacting?" Jess seemed to deflate a little.

"I'm sorry," he apologized meekly. Rory stared at him for a moment, breathing hard.

"You're an idiot," she told him.

This was a little too much for Jess's pride.

"Look Rory, I said I'm sorry!" he protested. "But can you really blame me? How do I know that you're not going to just get bored and run off with another guy like you did to Dean?"

Rory closed her eyes, her hands curled at her sides. With all her might she willed herself not to hit him. "I… can't… talk… now…" she managed. She got into her car and sped out of the driveway.

She sped down the streets, leaving Jess and everything else far behind. When she pulled up in front of the Independence Inn, she saw preparations for a wedding were underway. _Great,_ she though. _The place is going to be an absolute zoo._ Chaos was not what she needed right now.

Lorelai was working at the front desk, copying some numbers down. She looked up to see Rory striding towards her.

"Rory!" she smiled in surprise. Although she was happy to see her daughter, she was also a little trepid. They hadn't really talked since that night with Christopher. She was scared, and a little bit embarrassed facing her daughter. She was glad Rory had come though. Avoiding the problem wasn't helping anyone. But as her daughter came closer she could see that something was wrong. Rory's cheeks were flushed, and she was breathing heavily. Her eyes looked as though they had just been wiped free of tears.

"Mom!" Rory reached the desk. She took a deep breath, trying to steady herself. Now that she was here, Lorelai thought, she looked a little lost, as if she wasn't exactly sure why she had come, or how to go about it.

"Hey," Lorelai put a steadying hand on her daughter's arm. "I'm really happy you came." Rory looked relieved. "Why don't you come sit down?" She led Rory to the couch in the Inn's lobby, and poured her a glass of water from the pitcher that stood on the table. Rory took the cup gratefully, grasping it with both hands. She took a long gulp, and then leaned back in the couch, holding the cup in her lap.

"Rory?" her mother gently prompted gently. "Is everything ok?" Rory glanced toward Lorelai.

"I missed you," she offered in an answer. Lorelai looked down.

"So did I. I'm so sorry Rory. I never meant to upset you. I hate that I got you angry."

"It's okay," Rory assured her calmly. "I understand."

"Do you? Because I really need you to." Her bright blue eyes sparkled with moisture. Rory nodded. Lorelai sensed that not all else was resolved. "Is there something else bothering you?" she prodded. Rory hesitated, not used to having her mother there.

"I don't know. Maybe this was a stupid idea. But you used to be the only one I could talk to, and now there's no one else." She looked down at her hands, feeling her face turn red. "This probably was a bad idea," she said, starting to get up. Lorelai pushed her back down.

"No, Rory, if you need me, then I'm here for you!" Lorelai insisted. This was her chance to do something right by her daughter. "What's going on?" Rory bit her lip, hesistating.

"It's Jess," she blurted out.

"Ok," Lorelai followed. "What happened? Did you fight?"

Before Rory could answer, the doors of the Inn burst open again.

"Lorelai," Luke gasped. His hat had nearly been knocked off his head, and his eyes were bright from exertion. "Lorelai we need to talk!" Lorelai blushed a deep red when she saw him.

"Luke-"

"Wait," he cut her off. "Look, I'm sorry about this morning. I know that more confusion is the last thing you need, and it was selfish of me to throw more stuff on you. I'm not sorry it happened, but I want you to know that I know things are complicated, and I don't expect- Rory!" he stopped in his tracks as her head came into view. "I didn't expect to see you here." Color crept into his cheeks.

"Clearly," she agreed. "What were you talking about?" When Luke said nothing, Rory turned to her mother. "Mom, what's going on?"

"Can we talk?" Luke pressed Lorelai.

"I-"

"Lorelai!" Christopher entered the already crowded Inn.

"Chris?" Lorelai felt as if the room was a hundred degrees.

"Lorelai, I had to come. It's the only way I'd get you to talk to me. You've been avoiding me ever since…" he finally noticed Rory and Luke standing there. "What's going on?" he asked as confusion crossed his handsome features. "Is something wrong? Rory?"

Lorelai glanced from face to face as the past closed in on her. Here stood Rory, Christopher, and Luke, people that in her mind she had only met a few months ago, but somewhere inside she knew that they were all essential parts of her life. All looked to her expectantly. But she had nothing to give them. She had nothing left but her confusion, confusion that was sucking her in like a deep dark abyss.

"Lorelai?"

"Lorelai?"

"Mom?"

The abyss overtook her. She could no longer see, hear, feel. There was only black, only nothing…

Lorelai crumpled to the floor.

"Mom!" Rory rushed over and bent over her mother's lifeless form. "Mom!"

Jess entered into the Inn, his eyes searching the room for Rory. He located her, bent over a limp form on the floor. He stared, trying to comprehend the situation. Luke, Chris, and Rory all crouched around the motionless figure, calling her name. Automatically, Jess reached for his cell phone.

"911, what is your emergency?"

"I'm going to need an ambulance…"

Okay, take a deep breath, and review!

There's probably only going to be one more chapter and maybe and epilogue. Tell me your thoughts. They count!


	20. As Memories Futures Hang in the Balance

Hello my loyal readers! so this was supposed to be the last chapter, but it was getting to long so there's going to be either another full chapter or an epilogue coming soon. So read, review, and stick around for more!

I would just like to say thanks to all my reviewers for helping me to break 200 reviews and 100 alerts! You guys are the reason I write fan fiction!

**Disclaimer: ** don't own it, never will. Just the plot is mine...

(So basically Lorelai just fainted in the inn... just in case your memories are a little rusty)

**Chapter 19**

** As Memories and Futures Hang in the Balance**

The florescent lights contrasted Rory's blue sneakers against the sharp white floor of the hospital. Doctors and nurses rushed all around as their names were paged over the loudspeaker system. The chemical, disinfectant smell filled the waiting room. Rory gripped the armrests of the hard plastic chair. After the ambulance had arrived, they had loaded Lorelai, still unconscious, onto a stretcher. Rory climbed into the ambulance behind them, watching as they bent over her mom. Above their heads, the sirens and lights were warning all the cars to make room. It took seven long, interminable minutes to arrive at the hospital. She had run alongside the medics as they raced the stretcher through the halls, yelling phrases that were unintelligible to her ears. Then they had pushed through a door that she was not allowed through, and she was left with nothing to do but wait. Jess, Luke, and her dad were on their way, she knew and she waited anxiously for them to arrive. The feeling of not knowing, of complete helplessness, cut into her. She fidgeted in her seat, undid her ponytail and then put it up again. She just needed to be doing something besides sitting and waiting, with nothing to do except imagine the worst possible outcomes. She couldn't lose her mother. Not now, not after she had come so close to getting her back. Loosing her mother a second time would tear her apart, so far beyond repair, and her life would never be the same again.

There was a slight commotion as Luke, and Jesse entered. As soon as they spotted Rory they made their way straight towards her. She stood as they drew nearer.

"Hey, what's going on?" Luke asked urgently.

"I don't know!" Rory cried. "They took her behind the doors and the doctor hasn't come out yet!" She stopped, unable to continue.

"Shh," Luke soothed her. He pulled her into a soft embrace. "It's going to be all right," he promised. "Everything's going to be just fine." Rory closed her eyes, feeling safe in his arms again, they same way she had felt when she lived with him.

Chris ran up the hospital's stairs, having no patience to wait for the elevators. When he got to the right floor, he ran down the hallway to the waiting room. He paused, glancing about the crowded room for Rory. He couldn't find her at first. Then, finally, he spotted her in Luke's arms. He hesitated. He couldn't help the twisted feeling he got in his stomach every time he felt Luke was stealing the role of "father" from him. Slowly, he made his way over to them.

"Hey," he said softly. "What's going on with Lorelai?" Rory shook her head.

"I don't know yet," she said helplessly.

"Rory," Jess urged, tapping her shoulder. He pointed to a doctor making his way towards them.

"Um, Mr. Gilmore?" he asked Luke. Luke shook his head. "I'm her friend," he corrected. "This is her daughter." He pointed to Rory. The doctor focused on Rory. He was a handsome doctor in his mid forty's, with kind but sharp eyes.

"I'm Dr. Camden Jeth. Were you with your mother when she collapsed?" he asked. Rory nodded, wrapping her arms around herself.

"What happened? Is she going to be okay?" she asked, her voice hoarse against her dry throat.

"We found some damage from the accident that we had not seen before. There was some pressure, right above the memory part of her brain, and it seems to have caused some internal bleeding. You're mother is in surgery right now."

"What is the surgery for?" Christopher asked.

"They're trying to relieve the pressure and stop the bleeding," answered Doctor Jeth. "It may take a little while longer, but I will be out as soon as I know anything more."

"Thank you," Rory said as he turned to go. As soon as the hospital doors swung closed behind him, Rory felt a wave of exhaustion sweep through her. It was as if something had been holding her together this whole time, keeping her moving, and now she was left on her own. She felt her knees give way, and collapsed hard onto the plastic chair beneath her.

"Rory, are you okay?" Luke asked, noticing her pale complexion. Rory nodded, unable to speak. "You need a drink," he decided, and he hurried off. Chris's phone started to ring, piercing the somber silence of the emergency room. He looked down at the caller ID and flipped open his cell phone.

"Hello," he greeted, sauntering away slowly. Jess and Rory were left in the silence. Jess took a seat in the chair next to her. The tension from their earlier fight hung in the air between them.

"Rory, I'm sorry." Jess began. "I…"

"I know," Rory told him. He took her hand and she laid her head on his shoulder. They sat there for a while, Jess stroking her back, Rory savoring the comfort of the fleeting moment.

"Ms. Gilmore?"

Rory had been drifting in and out of consciousness on Jess's shoulder. As soon as Dr. Jeth spoke her name however, she whipped her head up.

"Yes?" she asked, standing up. She attempted to smooth out her matted hair. She looked at the clock. Two and a half endless hours had passed since they began the surgery. "What's going on?" Rory pressed the doctor.

"We finished the surgery," he informed her, taking a breath. "We were able to relieve the pressure, but we're not sure how much damage, if any, was done, if any. We won't be able to assess that until she wakes up."

Luke piped in. "What kind of damage could we be looking at?" he asked wearily. Dr. Jeth hesitated.

"It's hard to tell. We're dealing mostly with the memory center, so it could be anything from amnesia of the past few days, or complete loss of short-term memory." Rory leaned back into Luke for support. If her mother lost her memory again…. She didn't know if they would be able to recover from that.

"It'll be okay," her murmured once again.

"In a little while we'll let you in to see her. It's hard to tell when exactly she'll wake up."

"Thank you," Rory said meekly. Dr. Jeth left, and the four of them stood silently, at a loss for worlds. Rory swayed unsteadily, and Jess caught her in his arms. He pulled her towards him, and she buried her face in his coat. Jess wrapped his arms around her, and Rory allowed herself to feel safe in the tightness of his embrace, as if everything was okay as long as she was there.

Chris and Luke stood awkwardly, not quiet sure what to do with themselves. The two of them took seats. Chris leaned forward, gripping his head in between his hands. Luke sat back, bending his baseball cap in a nervous grip.

"She's going to be okay," Luke heard Chris murmur to himself. "She'll be okay." Hesitantly, he placed a hand on his shoulder.

"She will be," Luke assured him. Chris moved away, as if Luke's hand had burned him.

"You don't know that!" he bit acidly. "You don't know anything!"

Luke blinked, taken aback. Chris continued.

"I'm not stupid Luke. No one is! Everyone knows how you feel about Lorelai. And you know what?" he spit. "Stop it already! It's pathetic! Stop trying to be part of our lives! We already have a family, and you're not in it!"

"I was more of a family to them then you ever were for a very long time!" Luke argued back, his face reddening.

"You son of a…"

"Dad, stop it!" Rory pushed herself between the two men, placing a hand on her Dad's chest to keep him back. "Come on, sit down." She pushed him into a chair and sat next to him.

"He needs to leave," Chris said, his breathing heavy with anger.

"What?" Rory asked, confused.

"I can't be in the same room as that man! He needs to leave now," he demanded.

"Don't be stupid Dad," Rory pleaded.

"Rory, if he doesn't leave, then I will," Christopher threatened. Rory looked at him, hurt and shock written across her face.

"Really? You would leave because of him? Dad, Luke has just as much of a right to be here as you do. Luke _raised _me for two years, and he's been there for me for a lot longer than that. Everyone who's here right now should be here, and no one is leaving."

Chris didn't respond, just sat back in his chair with a scowl on his face. Rory sat back also, but then she noticed Luke staring at her with an odd expression on his face, almost like pride.

"What?" Rory asked slyly. Luke shook his head softly.

"Nothing," he claimed. Rory would have pressed on, but just then a nurse in green scrubs came over to them.

"Are you Lorelai Gilmore's family?"

Rory nodded.

"You may go in to see her if you like," she offered.

"You guys go ahead," Jess told them. "We'll wait here." Luke nodded his consent, so Rory and Chris followed the nurse wordlessly down the hall. She led them through a door that had a sign that read "Recovery ICU." The smell of latex gloves and disinfectant got stronger as the moved down the hall. Finally the nurse stopped outside a room, checked something off on a clipboard she was holding, and they entered.

Lorelai lay on the bed; her eye's closed, in a position Rory had been used to seeing her until just a few months ago. A breathing tube ran from her nose to a machine next to her bed, and a heart monitor kept a steady beeping noise filling the silence. The nurse checked her vitals, and then left Rory, Chris and Lorelai alone in the room. Rory took a seat next to her mother's head. She smoothed out her hair and took her lifeless hand. Chris stood uncomfortably in the corner of the room, looking down at the motionless figure as if he was afraid of it.

"Dad, what's wrong?"

Chris shook his head.

"Nothing," he said, flashing his daughter a weak smile. But still he did not approach the bed. Rory did not push him any further. She turned back to the still figure of her mother. She looked so peaceful, blissfully unaware of the turmoil going on around her.

"Come back," she whispered. "We need you."

A day later, nothing had changed. Luke, Jess and Rory all sat around Lorelai. Rory's memory flashed back to when she was a little girl, and her mother read her the story of Sleeping Beauty. Her mother was just like that now, waiting for her handsome prince to kiss her so she would awake. But who was her handsome prince? Rory glanced at her father, in his sweater and designer Jeans, his hair cut short and neatly combed back. Then her gaze traveled to Luke, dressed in his predictable flannel shirt, messy hair hidden beneath his backward baseball cap. It was prince charming versus the beast, and Rory was no longer sure who she wanted to win.

Luke stared at the motionless figure on the bed. She looked so small, as though at any instant she would disappear beneath the hospital blankets. The secret of their last meeting and the passionate kiss made his heart speed up. The possibility of what could be, or what never should have been, chased around his mind in circles. He willed Lorelai to wake up, desperate for the confusion to clear.

_Lorelai was floating. She floated through a kaleidoscope of color, her body light as air. Slowly, the different colors cleared and she was standing outside._

"_Mom, look!" A little girl ran past her, dressed in a flowered dress. She threw her head back and laughed, her brown hair flying out behind her in the soft breeze. She skipped down the sidewalk, her small body bouncing up and down._

"_Be careful!" Lorelai called, letting her go ahead as she strolled behind. She passed by Jackson, who was managing his vegetable stand. _

"_Hey Lorelai," he greeted her. "What are you doing in the neighborhood?"_

_Lorelai's faced glowed as she told him._

"_I just bought a house!" she shared excitedly. _

"_Congratulations!" Jackson pulled her into a hug. "Welcome neighbor!" he added cheesely. _

"_Thank you!" Lorelai turned back to follow her daughter, and what she saw almost made her heart stop. The little girl was still skipping… right into the street._

"_Rory!" she yelled. She felt fear rise up in her throat, constricting her chest, paralyzing her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a car rounding the corner. It would not see her until it was too late. She started running towards her daughter, knowing she couldn't make it in time. All of a sudden, an arm shot out, and pulled the little girl back, out of danger. The arms set her back onto the sidewalk just as Lorelai reached them. She bent down, hugging Rory, never wanting to let her go again. _

_She looked up at the man who saved her daughters life. _

"_Thank you," she gushed in gratitude. The man nodded, but she could not see his face. She felt a strange connection to the faceless man. As he towered over her, she strained to make out his features. But all she could see was a shimmering vagueness. He turned his face away, and all of a sudden his face was that of Chris. But then he turned back toward her and he looked like Luke. Lorelai stared, trying to decide who he was. Was he Luke? Was he Chris? Back and forth he turned his head, his face changing with every movement. Slowly, everything began to fade again, becoming a blurry pool of nothingness._

The first thing Lorelai was aware of was a steady beeping. Beep. Beep. Beep, keeping rhythm with her heart. Slowly she opened her eyes, the outline of other people in the room coming into focus. Four concerned faces gazed at her as she blinked, disoriented. She saw her daughter, by her side as she had always been. In front of her stood Luke and Chris three awkward feet apart. Leaning against the wall was Jess, but his eyes were not on Lorelai. They were on her daughter, watching for the slightest sign that she needed his support.

"Mom?" Rory prompted. Lorelai nodded, shifting slowly so that she was sitting up in the bed. She squeezed her eyes, trying to remember what happened. Something tugged in the back of her mind.

"Do you know where you are?" she prompted gently.

"In the hospital…" she told her slowly, the scene in the Inn coming back to her. "I… I was in the Inn… and then everything went black."

She recalled Rory's distressed expression, Luke's worry, and Chris's frantic appearance. But other things flooded her memory too. Things that hadn't been there before. _She remembered lying in a similar position in the hospital, except that time she was cradling a baby in her arms…. She frantically threw things into the suitcase, picked up the small toddler, and placed the hastily scrawled note on the table. She headed towards the door, and hugging the child to her, disappeared into the night… She stared at the image in the mirror. With her freshly ironed apron, the maid uniform looked strange on the girl that had grown up in a large house in Hartford. She turned to the little girl that watched her from inside her PACK'N'PLAY. A laughed gurgled out of her throat, causing her young mother to smile…and a familiar scence, one she had just recalled in a dream. Her precious daughter skipping ahead, stepping into the street, and safe arms pulling her back. She smiled up at her daughter's savior. And this time she saw the face._

"I… I remember!" she said excitedly, grasping her daughter's hands. Rory looked distressed.

"I know, and it's a good sign that you remember what happened before you fell but…" Lorelai interrupted her.

"No! I remember!... Everything!" she insisted. Rory stared at her, too afraid to allow herself to understand.

"Everything?" she repeated quietly. Luke and Chris leaned for anxiously. Lorelai nodded, tears springing to her eyes.

"Everything. You, me…us." a wide smile broke across Rory's face, and she hugged her mother tightly.

"I love you," Rory whispered. Lorlelai squeezed her eyes tight, preventing the tears from escaping.

"I know," she said.

Okay, next step= REVIEW PLEASE! The more you review, the more encouraged and excited I am to put up the next chapter.

:] :] ;]


	21. Reborn

And now *drum roll* for the last and final chapter of The Darkness of the Day....

** Chapter 20: Reborn**

Lorelai couldn't sleep. She tossed and turned, the blankets becoming entangled around her small frame. She had been let out of the hospital that morning, after the millions of tests she had undergone had authorized the doctors to set her free. The freedom was exhilarating but it did not even come close to the soaring feeling in her chest at having her life back. Her memories, they had all returned! The confusion was all gone. It was as if half of her had been repressed for all this time, and now that half had returned, stronger than ever. She remembered everything. Sookie, Chris, the Inn, and most importantly her daughter. And she had remembered Luke.

Unable to spend another moment stagnant, Lorelai climbed out of her bed and made her way to her bedroom window. She lifted up the window and let the cool air blow in. It was so refreshing. Life no longer scared her. She was ready, set to embrace it head on. Without really concentrating on what she was doing, Lorelai grabbed a sweatshirt out of her closet and tiptoed down the stairs. She slipped out the front door, pulling her amrs around herself in protection to the cold night air. And she began to walk. She walked past her house, past Babbette's, finally able to enjoy the memories that these places had created. She skipped past Dosey's market and the bookstore, Rory's favorite place to spend time. Finally she came to a stop in the town square. Across the street the lights from Luke's diner were still on. She watched through the glass windows as Luke pushed the tables to the wall and stacked the chairs on top of them. He took a rag and wiped down the counters, unaware that he was being observed. He paused, throwing the rag behind the counter, surveying his diner. His eyes scrunched thoughtfully as he looked around. Seemingly satisfied, he flicked off the lights, ready to head on up to his bed. It was then that he spotted Lorelai, across the street, standing alone in the Town Square. Bewildered, he made his way out into the cold night air, an abundance of emotion rising in his throat.

"Lorelai!" he called out, running across the street. His breath came out in smoky white puffs. Startled, she turned to him. "What are you doing here? It's freezing out!"

Lorleai shivered, but the warmth was retained in her cheeks. She smiled

"I couldn't sleep," she confessed. "How could you expect me to? I feel like I am finally alive for the first time in months! All the confusion, the hopelessness, that's all gone now."

Luke smiled as he watched her excitedly explain all of this to him. Her eyes sparkled as if she was a young girl.

"And I remembered something very important," Lorelai hinted. "Something I've been struggling to gain clarity on."

Intrigued, Luke moved closer to her, and she drew herself towards him. They were now standing so close, she could feel the heat of his breath on her cheek when he spoke.

"And what is that?" he asked her.

"You." She looked up at him, her eyes clear. "You were the one that was always there as long as I knew you, always one step ahead of or behind me. You acted the part of a loving father to Rory when she needed it. And here you are again," she rested a hand gently on his chest. "Right where I need you." She leaned forward, and there lips met as if pulled together by some magnetic force between them. And there, in the town square, they created another memory.

**The End.**

I hope everyone enjoyed this story! Thanks to all my loyal readers. I'm sad to see this story go, but I really enjoyed writing it. Now it's your last chance to review :) Until the next story!

~Manhttngal


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